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The Panthers placed Cam Newton on injured reserve on Tuesday due to his ongoing foot injury which likely means that his 2019 season is over. Newton hasn’t played since Week 2 against the Buccanneers and posted an 0-2 record to start the season.
“For the past seven weeks, Cam has diligently followed a program of rest and rehab and still is experiencing pain in his foot,” general manager Marty Hurney said in a statement. “He saw two foot specialists last week who agreed that he should continue that path prescribed by the team’s medical staff, and that it likely will take significant time for the injury to fully heal.
“We have said all along that it is impossible to put a timetable on this injury. Nobody is more frustrated with that fact than Cam. He’s one of the fiercest competitors I’ve been around during my 20-plus years in the League. At this time, we have decided that the best decision to reach the goal of bringing the foot back to 100 percent is to place Cam on injured reserve.”
What’s interesting is that Newton has seen foot specialists about the injury and ESPN reported on Sunday that the injury does not require any type of surgery. The fact that there is no surgery reportedly needed only fuels the rumor fires that are suggesting Newton’s time in Carolina is done.
While the statement doesn’t verbatim say ‘Newton is done for the year,’ it’s pretty simple to read between the lines here; this is Kyle Allen’s team from here on out.
Newton’s most recent five-year, $103.8 million contract ends next season making him a free-agent following the 2020 campaign.
He completed 50 of 89 pass attempts this season for 572 yards in the two games he played in this season.