Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton did not participate in Wednesday practice ahead of Week 3, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports.
No Cam Newton for practice this morning, which is pretty expected. Once a few weeks ago he did come in after the gates were closed, but I don’t imagine that will be the case today.
— Jourdan Rodrigue (@JourdanRodrigue) September 18, 2019
Newton is still in a walking boot after re-aggravating a midfoot sprain in Thursday night’s 20-14 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The fact that he did not take part in practice does not bode well for his chances to play on Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals. If Newton doesn’t play, Kyle Allen is set to start in his place.
Allen has started just one game in his career, which came in Week 17 last season against the New Orleans Saints. He went 16 of 27 for 228 yards and three total touchdowns to lead the Panthers to a 33-14 win.
Newton has had a rough start to the season, which is a big reason the Panthers have gone down an 0-2 hole with home losses to the Rams and Buccaneers.
He’s gone 50 of 89 (56 percent) for 572 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. He was especially ineffective against the Bucs, where he threw for 333 yards but went just 25 of 51.
Based on how poorly Newton played Thursday night, it might not be a bad idea for him to sit out a game and or two and give that injured foot time to heal.
He doesn’t seem to be in any shape to help this team win at the moment, so it would be better for his long-term outlook to get as healthy as possible before returning to the field.
If Newton does miss out, the Panthers will need a much stronger effort from Christian McCaffrey against the Cardinals. The second-year running back was limited to just 53 yards on 18 total touches against Tampa Bay.
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