Cam Newton names and shames ex-Panthers GM, outlines how Panthers saved money on $103,000,000 deal
According to Cam Newton, the Carolina Panthers saved money on the five-year $103,000,000 deal he signed in June of 2015. Newton was coming off four solid seasons after being drafted first overall in 2011. In the season after signing his extension, he went on to lead the team to a 15-1 record and even led them to the Super Bowl. The quarterback also won MVP.
Immediately, it looked like Newton's contract would be team-friendly for the Panthers, which the QB agrees about to this day, as he revealed on his 4th & 1 Show:
“I signed my deal the year before I won MVP. At that time it was astronomical. Some people agreed. Some people didn’t like it. Boom, the next year I won MVP. The reality is this: they saved money. If I would’ve signed the deal after we went to the Super Bowl, that price would’ve shot up so high, I would’ve probably put the team in a worse situation because the market value would’ve been so extreme that we wouldn’t have had the money to go after receivers."
When asked if he was able tell the GM who to sign after he took a bit of a discount, Cam Newton says that didn't happen, which might have played a role in Dave Gettleman no longer being in the league:
“It was [ex-Panthers GM] Dave Gettleman. And where is he? While you ask Siri where he is right now, she’s like ‘this may take a moment’.”
Gettleman was the Panthers GM from 2013 to 2017, and then the New York Giants GM from 2017 to 2021. Since then, the 72-year-old has been out of the NFL.
Cam Newton's NFL career
Cam Newton was drafted first overall by the Carolina Panthers in 2011 and spent his first nine years in the NFL there. After Carolina failed to trade him, he was released by the team, and he signed a one-year deal with the New England Patriots in July 2020.
In his lone year with the Patriots, Newton went 242-for-368 for 2,657 yards, eight touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. He also rushed for 592 yards and 12 touchdowns. Newton then signed a one-year deal to return to Carolina in November 2021. He played in eight games and started five, but has been out of the NFL since then.
He finished his NFL career throwing for 32,382 yards, 123 touchdowns and 91 interceptions. He's also rushed for 5,628 yards and 75 touchdowns.