Cam Newton was benched by the New England Patriots for Jarrett Stidham during a poor start on Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass.
Newton was having a rough time throughout the game and went 9/15 for 98 yards and three interceptions before being asked to take a seat midway through the third quarter. He also had five rushes for 19 yards.
After Newton threw his third interception, which came in the third quarter, head coach Bill Belichick was shown walking up to Newton and giving him a pat on the bench. That seemed to be Belichick’s way of nicely saying “we’re going to go with Stidham.”
The poor accuracy and lack of zip on his passes Sunday led some to wonder whether Newton is being bothered by his shoulder again.
Newton also looked bad in a Week 6 loss to the Broncos where he went 17/25 for 157 yards and two interceptions. His recent performances have left fans wondering what happened to the guy who looked like his old MVP self the first two games of the season.
