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It's official! Cam Newton sat out the entire 2022 NFL regular season, and he will be heading into 2023 as a free agent. If you'd told a casual NFL fan a couple of years ago that this would be the case, such a fan would probably scoff at the suggestion. However, it's 2023, and Cam Newton remains without a professional football contract.
In his prime, Newton was one of the biggest threats in the league, as he possessed quite the arsenal. A prime Cam Newton could beat you on the ground or in the air, and it wasn't easy to game plan with him visiting your stadium. However, all things must end, even the good ones. Newton is well into his thirties, and his athletic ability has disappeared. But some NFL teams could still find a way for Newton to thrive in their systems.
That's why we are here. We will be looking at three teams that can't do worse than taking a gamble on the former league MVP. So without further ado, let's get to it!
The three teams that could take a gamble on Cam Newton
Here are the franchises that could sign former Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton in 2023, in no particular order.
1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tom Brady announced his retirement after the 2021-2022 NFL season, and the entire league begrudgingly paid homage to the GOAT. However, forty days later, he unretired and chose to lead the Bucs on another Super Bowl quest. However, this season, Brady's contract with the Buccaneers is expiring, and the Bucs might be in the market for another former-MVP quarterback. Step forward, Cam Newton, a QB that has won everything but the Super Bowl.
Newton's addition to the Buccaneers might be a short-term fix, as the Bucs might decide to launch a full-scale rebuild after Tom Brady leaves. The 2023 QB free agency class is rather weak, so Newton might fill the void as Tampa awaits a stronger 2024 QB free agency class.
2. Atlanta Falcons
The Atlanta Falcons traded Matt Ryan to the Indianapolis Colts at the beginning of the 2022 season. That signaled the end of an era, and it showed the rest of the league that the Falcons were committing to a new regime at QB. Who did the Falcons replace the legendary Ryan with? They replaced him with Marcus Mariota, a decent backup QB, yes, but certainly not the franchise QB of a team that desires to be taken seriously. Worse still, the Falcons aren't bad enough to garner the top 1-3 picks that would give them a shot at, say, Bryce Young or C. J. Stroud.
As such, maybe the Falcons would elect to gamble on Cam Newton, a big-name player with something left in the gas tank. Newton has spoken about not returning to the NFL to play backup, and the Falcons can offer him a starting berth next season. Like the Bucs, the Falcons would still be monitoring the 2024 free agency and draft class with Newton at the center.
3. New Orleans Saints
The New Orleans Saints have a carousel at the quarterback position. First, they have a former touchdown leader in Jameis Winston, an unpredictable quarterback. Winston can have a Pro Bowl-worthy game this week and throw for three picks the next. That's what comes with having the former Tampa gunslinger on your team.
Then there's Andy Dalton, a quarterback who has had better times in the league and who is as serviceable a backup as you can get. You could even throw in the Swiss army knife, Taysom Hill, for good measure in the Saints QB room.
What's common with all the names we just mentioned? It's the fact that Cam Newton has had a far better career than all of them. The Saints are an interesting team in today's NFL, and they could get even more entertaining with Newton as a starter. So why not? Let's see what a season of the Panthers' great would look like in New Orleans.
