New England Patriots must not let Cam Newton gain confidence
By Nick Ziegler
In Week 4, the New England Patriots will be playing the Carolina Panthers. One of the players that the Patriots will be paying attention to is Cam Newton.
After a bit of a disappointing start to the season, the New England Patriots will be at home for the second straight game against the Carolina Panthers. Like the Patriots, the Panthers have a 2-1 record but have also had some issues of their own.
For the Panthers, a lot of their problems have been at the quarterback position. Despite having some great years in the NFL already, Cam Newton has gotten off to a poor start to the season. After undergoing surgery in the offseason, Newton has struggled to find his rhythm early on this season.
In the first game of the season, Newton had a completion percentage just over 50 percent. If not for some really poor throws, the Panthers would have been able to beat the 49ers even more than they did.
The following week against the Buffalo Bills, Newton once again didn’t play very well. In an ugly defensive showdown, Newton totaled 220 passing yards without a touchdown. Thanks to some strong defensive performances, the Panthers were able to win both games despite Newton playing poorly.
Last week, Newton’s play did not improve and the Panthers were blown out by the Saints. In the loss, Newton threw three interceptions without a touchdown in a golden matchup.
So far this season, the Patriots have really struggled against opposing quarterbacks. Despite having a lot of talent in the secondary, passers have had a lot of success throwing against New England.
Of the three quarterbacks that the Patriots have faced so far this season, all three have totaled 300 or more passing yards. While Drew Brees throwing for 300 passing yards, seeing Alex Smith and Deshaun Watson do it against the Patriots’ defense is concerning.
Next: Is New England's offensive line good enough?
Week 4 is going to be a classic something has to give. Even though Newton has played very poorly, he could be prepared to have a big game. For the New England defense, they must focus on keeping a quarterback under 300 passing yards.