On Friday morning, Cam Newton released a lengthy video on his YouTube page titled, "Clearing the air after my release from the New England Patriots."
Newton and his father, Cecil, discussed everything that happened this summer, which included how the veteran learned he was going to be released.
The quarterback arrived to the facility Aug. 31, the morning of cut-down day, ahead of a team meeting scheduled for 10 a.m. and was told Bill Belichick wanted to meet with him. He then went to a room where Matt Patricia was present as well.
“We greeted each other and we just started talking," Newton said. "And at that time they told me they were going to give the reigns to Mac [Jones] and I was like, ‘OK, cool.’ It didn’t dawn on me that I was like, ‘Y’all releasing me? You know what I mean?’ I was confused. We all were shocked. It was uncomfortable for everybody.”
The quarterback acknowledged the move caught him off guard, but looking back he saw how things went down.
“When I look back at it, I was probably getting two reps to his 10 reps," Newton said. "And that’s why it was starting to make sense. Even though I was starting, that doesn’t necessarily mean nothing. I think that’s where they did a good job disguising it.”
Newton said he would have taken a backup role.
“I would have said absolutely, yeah," he said. "The truth of the matter is [Jones] would have been uncomfortable.”
Newton added: “The reason why they released me was because indirectly I was going to be a distraction — without being the starter. Just my aura. That’s my gift. That’s my curse. When you bring a Cam Newton to your facility, when you bring Cam Newton to your franchise, people are interested.”
The 32-year-old remains a free agent.
