Uh-oh. They never left, but Cam Newton means Bill Belichick and Patriots are back! | Opinion
America awakened Monday to the perfect little juxtaposition of NFL news, the timing of it exquisite.
Top headline on ESPN.com: ‘Sources: QB Newton joins Patriots on 1-year deal.’
Headline right below that: ‘NFL fines Pats $1.1 million, takes pick for sideline film.’
I was raised being told, “Cheaters never prosper.” Hmm. Really, ma?
The cheaters just prospered.
The rules-bending, corner-cutting New England Patriots — prematurely written off as a dead dynasty when Tom Brady departed for Tampa Bay — just signed free agent prize Cam Newton to replace him.
Crreeaak. The coffin lid lifts and Bill Belichick sits bolt-upright, a maniacal grin on his maw. He winks. The wink says, “Not that I ever left — but I’m back!”
The dynamic in the AFC East just shifted dramatically if Newton is fit and can again be the three-time Pro Bowl player who was league MVP in 2015. He missed almost all of last season with a Linsfranc fracture of his foot and also has labored through a shoulder injury but is said to be fully healthy. And when he is, he’s a dual-threat offensive force as good as most anybody.
Miami will find out first. Season opener: The Newton England Patriots host the Dolphins on September 13.
[Quick disclaimer: We are talking about a football season that may or may not happen at all, or on time, or with fans, due to the ongoing coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic that halted all sports in March and threatens the continuation of them. The reason is that the deadly virus is not yet contained. The reason for that is too many science-deniers or just plain selfish morons refusing to wear protective masks or practice social distancing. Latest example: A country singer named Chase Rice played before a jam-packed crowd Saturday night in Tennessee, proudly posting a video on Instagram with the tone-deaf message, “We back.”].
When the next NFL season does begin, whether on schedule this fall or not, the Patriots landing Newton, in his prime, having just turned 31, should remind fans of the Dolphins, Bills and Jets that the last rites for the Patriots reign might have come a tad too soon.
Newton’s one-year, incentive-heavy contract is an audition, in effect. If he passes, a long-term deal awaits. Otherwise, Belichick moves on, to Jarrett Stidham, or he finds somebody better.
Meantime Newton is a heck of a bridge. Low risk, enormous upside. His versatility and running threat give Belichick and offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels a ton to work with. That he will win the job over young Stidham and veteran journeyman Brian Hoyer seems foregone.
The Patriots and Bills had been AFC East co-favorites at around 9 projected wins to the Jets’ 7 1/2 and Dolphins‘ 6. But Monday, with the Newton signing, New England’s odds immediately improved at Caesars Sportsbook and elsewhere.
Newton posted on Twitter Sunday night: I’m excited as I don’t know what right now! #LETSgoPATS.
Newton surely is instantly the most accomplished, proven QB in the division, ahead of the Bills’ Josh Allen, 24, the Jets’ Sam Darnold, 23, and Dolphins rookie Tua Tagovailoa, 22.
Pending any of those guys blossoming into the star quarterbacks their franchises hope for, the Patriots currently have the best coach and the best quarterback in the division.
Again. Still.
As for that NFL punishment for wrongdoing? It isn’t the first time, or the second, for the club that made a phrase of Deflategate. Pats owner Robert Kraft is worth $7 billion. Fining him $1.1 million is like fining me the loose change under my couch cushion.
Having a third-round pick taken away hits Belichick a little harder; still, one imagines he will tough through it.
The funny thing is what the Patriots got penalized for doing: their TV crew filming the field and sideline during a Cleveland-Cincinnati game. The idea of the Patriots needing to cheat for an edge over the Browns or Bengals is a little like the United State trying to steal military secrets from Bermuda.
Bottom line? The AFC East is New England’s to lose, again, as a fascinating new rivalry looms: Brady, trying to magically transform Tampa Bay and prove he doesn’t need Belichick. And Belichick, trying to maintain the Patriots’ regal stature and prove he doesn’t need Brady.
It will be the tastiest subplot to the 2020 NFL season, presuming of course that there is one.
