Cam Newton currently is set to hit the free-agent market in two months, and his head coach, Bill Belichick, wasn't providing any hints about the New England Patriots' plans for their starting quarterback in 2021.
Newton spoke to reporters Thursday and certainly sounded like a quarterback preparing to play his final game in a Patriots uniform Sunday against the New York Jets.
The 31-year-old said his one regret this season is that he didn't have more time to prepare for the 2020 campaign through organized team activities and training camp.
Belichick was asked Friday if he wanted to continue working with Newton in the future.
"I agree with what Cam said," Belichick said Friday. "I wish we had more time together. I wish as a team we had more time with our team and with a lot of guys, especially new players. So, yeah, I agree with that.
"Yeah, I mean again at this point, just trying to do the best I can to help our team prepare for the Jets and finish the season on a good note. Again, these guys have really competed well in practice this week. They’ve tried to get ready, like they have all year long, and I want to do the best that I can to prepare our team to give us every opportunity to perform well on Sunday. So, all your questions about some other year and going forward and all that, we’ll deal with that in due time. But, right now, I really want us to try to go out and perform well on Sunday, and that’s really what everybody’s trying to do here, which that’s what I want and that’s what I expect and that’s what I respect about this group is the way they approach things like that."
The Patriots are 6-9 on the season and 6-8 with Newton as their starting quarterback. Newton has struggled as a passer this season, throwing five touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He also has 12 rushing touchdowns over 15 games.
