Yahoo News Cam Newton's ex-teammate details his major concern about Newton playing for Bill Belichick
The New England Patriots haven’t played a game yet, and there’s already plenty of talk about how Cam Newton will perform with his new team. While Newton’s ability is a question after his injuries, most of the focus on whether Newton will be successful in New England has centered on whether Newton can coexist with Bill Belichick.
At least one of Newton’s former teammates has concerns about that. Kyle Love — who played for both the Patriots and the Carolina Panthers — told the Boston Herald he’s not sure Newton, 31, can handle criticism from Belichick.
"This is just my opinion, but I don't feel like Cam can take the pressure of coaches talking down about his play. If he had a bad game in Carolina, the coaching staff wouldn't say much to him because they may have felt he could be a little frail about it or maybe pout. They never really corrected to the point Bill used to correct Tom."
Love, who played in New England from 2010 to 2012, said he heard Belichick “opened up a little bit, relaxed more” over the years, which could be good for Newton.
Bill Belichick was hard on Tom Brady
Belichick is known for openly critiquing players in front of the whole team. Tom Brady wasn’t exempt from that. If Brady had a bad game, Belichick let the entire team know about it.
While Brady, 43, has said nothing but positive things about his relationship with Belichick, reports highlighted that Brady had grown tired of Belichick’s criticism near the end of their tenure. Despite all that speculation, the two stayed together until this offseason.
Cam Newton knows what to expect from Bill Belichick
People can speculate on how Belichick and Newton will get along, but Newton isn’t going to be taken by surprise once the season starts. Belichick’s reputation is not a secret. If Newton wasn’t interested in being criticized, he wouldn’t have signed with the Patriots. Newton knew what he was getting into.
In a scenario where things go poorly, well, it’s for only one season. Belichick and Newton can move on after a year and look for something better. If things go well, this season could be the start of a new Patriots dynasty.
That kind of upside makes Newton’s one-year deal well worth the risk for everyone involved.
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