Report: Cam Newton open to backup job with right team

Cam Newton has shown he is willing to wait for the right opportunity to come along before signing with a team, but reports about the free agent quarterback’s unwillingness to accept a backup role are apparently not entirely accurate.

While it goes without saying that Newton would prefer to start in 2020, Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reported on Thursday that the former NFL MVP has “not ruled out taking a backup job in the right situation.”

From NFL Now: Free agent QB Cam Newton has not ruled out a backup QB job in the right situation, I'm told. He wants to be (and should be) a starter. But he's open to being a backup. pic.twitter.com/g89M6vAgyv

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) May 7, 2020

That report runs contrary what Joe Person of The Athletic said last weekend, which is that Newton will not sign with any team as a backup.

Even with his injury history and the fact that he was out for almost the entire 2019 season with a foot injury, it’s almost surreal that Newton could have to spend a season as a backup. There simply aren’t many starting jobs available at the moment. The Los Angeles Chargers have been mentioned as a possible Newton suitor, but they drafted Justin Herbert with the sixth overall pick and appear to be content entering the season with Tyrod Taylor as their starter if Herbert isn’t ready. The New England Patriots have also come up, but they passed on Andy Dalton and have virtually no salary cap space.

All indications have been that Newton is in no rush to sign a new deal, so the 30-year-old could still wait to see if an injury opens up a starting job. With the draft having come and gone, it seems unlikely that he will step into a starting role unless that happens.