Getty Cam Newton
When you’re struggling as bad as Cam Newton and the New England Patriots, analysts break down everything you do, and experts have honed in on Newton’s troubling throwing tendency.
Follow the Heavy on Patriots Facebook page for the latest breaking news, rumors, and content!
Cam Newton Hasn’t Been Throwing to His Right
CLNS’ Evan Lazar seemed to be the first member of the media to point this out.
Again, I’m not sure what it means. Physical, mental, nothing at all? Who knows. Only Cam. But he’s not looking that direction and isn’t throwing right much at all. Something to monitor.
Others, such as NESN’s Doug Kyed noticed a bit later.
Cam Newton didn’t throw a single pass to his right on Sunday.
He threw only three passes to his right in Week 6.
Cam Newton’s passing charts the last two weeks. Something has to be up. (via @NextGenStats)
Apparently, Newton is reluctant to throw the ball to his right. The passing charts above appear to show a massive imbalance in the portion of the field he’s willing to throw to throughout the course of a game.
It’s unclear why, and apparently, he hasn’t been asked why it appears he’s neglecting one side of the field. Quite obviously, if Lazar and Kyed have noticed, opposing defensive coordinators whose job is to find the weaknesses and tendencies of opponents have picked up on this as well.
If a defense knows a player doesn’t prefer to do any particular thing on the football field, it makes them a little easier to defend.
Is it His Vision, Arm, Mind, or Just a Bad Habit?
The million-dollar question here is why isn’t Newton throwing the ball to right. Does he not see that side of the field as well? Does he have a footwork issue that prevents him from pivoting to his right, to set his feet to deliver a pass properly on that side of the field? Is he reading the field from left to right and rarely getting to his second and third reads? Does he have issues with putting any velocity on the ball throwing in that direction, or is it simply all in his head?
In any case, this is something Newton needs to get a handle on. The Patriots have enough issues with their modestly-talented pass-catchers as it is. Newton’s reluctance to use one side of the field will only exacerbate the problem.
Fixing This Issue Could Be the Key to Righting the Ship
Again, we don’t know for sure what the issue could be. However, it’s no secret something has to be done, and based on watching nearly every snap from Newton this year, I’d be willing to be it’s a mechanics issue.
Others seem to agree.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CGzyljaFlck/
This problem appears to have gotten worse since he returned from COVID-19, missed practice, and likely lost his rhythm. When he was headfirst and focused on absorbing the team’s offense and buying into the mechanical tweaks he’d picked up from QB coach Jedd Fisch and Josh McDaniels, these problems weren’t as prevalent or existing at all.
Head coach Bill Belichick appears to have a good amount of confidence in Newton. That’s why he announced he’s sticking with him as the starting quarterback, but getting Newton’s footwork back intact should be the team’s primary focus.