When the face of a franchise is outright released, especially after free agency has already begun, questions will swirl from those on the outside about the timeline, the decision that went into the move and what’s happened in the aftermath of a decision that changes the way a team has looked and been thought of for almost a decade.
Now, picture those releases happening twice during one offseason. Throw in a surprise retirement of another franchise legend in the middle of those two moves – and the most iconic player in team history clapping back on social media after the team “gave up on him” and the gales of heresy, misinformation and hurt feelings will rise to a fever pitch.
Welcome to the 2020 Carolina Panthers offseason.
Just to reset, in case you’ve been asleep for the past three months (good morning – we can’t leave the house, Carole Baskin fed her husband to tigers, Olsen, Keuchly and Newton are no longer Panthers while toilet paper is our most valued commodity now, everything is great) the Panthers released an article the day before the start of the league year that they would “allow Cam Newton to seek a trade”, validating the rumors that had swirled for months that the team was secretly looking to shop the QB who was recovering from foot surgery and had had shoulder issues for the seasons prior.
Reset a little bit further.
Newton, who had said before the Super Bowl that he “absolutely” planned to be a Panther in 2020 and was excited to work with coach Matt Rhule, who had doubled down on that sentiment at the Combine by saying he was excited to coach Cam but was sure to add the usual caveat that had surrounded every missive from the team about Newton – if Cam was healthy.
Less than a month after those comments, Newton was made publicly available via trade and released shortly thereafter.
The former #1 overall pick had to privately be consoled after being blindsided by the team’s move, a source told The Riot Report, before publicly offering a sharp rebuttal on social media.
“ŠTØ₽ ₩ÏTH THĒ ₩ØRD ₽ŁÄ¥
ï ñëvër âškëd før ït THĒRĒ ÏŠ ÑØ DØDGÏÑG THÏŠ ØÑĒ;” Newton commented on the Instagram post declaring the team’s intention in his signature font. “ï łøvë thë @panthers TØ DĒÄTH ÄÑD ₩ÏŁŁ ÄŁ₩Ä¥š ŁØVĒ ¥ØŪ GŪ¥š₽ŁĒÄŠĒ DØ ÑØT TR¥ ÄÑD ₽ŁÄ¥ MĒ, ør MÄÑÏ₽ŪŁÄTĒ THĒ ÑÄRRÄTÏVĒ ÄÑD ÄČT ŁÏKĒ Ï ₩ÄÑTĒD THÏŠ; ÿøû førčëd më ïñtø thïš -1ØVĒ”
Newton has since offered multiple thinly veiled shots at the team as he works out and waits to be signed in free agency – his unemployment is on a longer timeline both due to the glut of quarterbacks available this offseason already and the fact that the league has prohibited team facilities from being open in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic that has gripped the nation.
View this post on Instagram
ïm•FRĒĒ•âñd•HŪÑGR¥‼️😈 »ñø₽ÏT¥pârtÿ« jûšt₩ØRK❕ #šhïñëTHRŪthëŠHÄDĒ #ñøtFØRłïkëšJŪŠTførŁÏFĒ -1ØVĒ🤟🏾
But GM Marty Hurney was quick to point out in his pre-draft conference call with the Panthers media Monday afternoon that Newton was told as soon as the Panthers had decided to make him available – and that the decision wasn’t an easy one.
“Obviously, in our job, you have to make very difficult decisions every year and this was probably one of the most difficult – I mean, I drafted Cam,” said Hurney. “We all know everything he’s brought to the organization, both on and off the field – so it was extremely difficult. The timing of it is – and this is how we do things – we put a lot of time, thought and communication into every decision that we make, but as soon as we make those decisions, we act on them.”
“So as soon as we [made that decision], I called Cam’s representatives and told them that we were going to start calling teams about seeing if there was trade interest in Cam. I think it came out publicly the next day – once we spent time doing that and seeing if teams were interested, when we got to a point where we thought that it didn’t seem like we were going to be able to make a trade in the near future, we thought that it was in the best interest of everybody to release him.”
So while the decision may have come out of nowhere for Newton, the Panthers maintain that they were open and honest with their quarterback, with both Hurney and owner David Tepper personally having private conversations with Newton.
“I just think that once we made that decision – and again, it was a lot of thought and communication went into it, once we made that, we let Cam know immediately. These difficult decisions have their own timelines, each one of them – and you make them for different reasons. Obviously, a lot plays into every one of those decisions, as it did this one, so I sense that you guys know how much we respect Cam and again, I appreciate everything he’s given – and it was extremely difficult.”
“But that’s where we ended up.”
Hurney declined to get into specifics on why the Panthers ultimately released the 2015 league MVP – so questions about whether he was demanding an extension, whether the team felt his shoulder or foot would never be the same, whether they wanted to start with a clean slate in terms of the coaching staff and quarterback in the same season or some other, more sinister reasoning forced the Panthers’ hand will continue to go unanswered.
Decisions in the NFL constantly prove the “it’s a business” idiom every offseason, none more than the messy release of a franchise quarterback – the Cam Newton situation proved no different and time will tell whether or not the Panthers will ultimately be the ones who regret their decision – and how it came across to those involved at the highest level.
