Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton underwent arthroscopic surgery on his throwing shoulder on Thursday, but the Panthers are hoping he will be back throwing by the OTAs in May, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network.
While the procedure was classified as minor, it is a bit worrisome because this is the second shoulder surgery Newton has had inside of the last two years. He underwent his first surgery in March 2017.
Newton's shoulder began to flare up in the second half of this season, as evidenced by the fact that he threw nine of his 13 interceptions from Weeks 10 through 15—including a four-pick outing in Week 13—before being shut down for the Panthers' final two games of the year.
Overall in 2018, Newton threw for 3,395 yards and 24 touchdowns while completing a career-high 67.9 percent of his passes and registering a passer rating of 94.2.
Carolina actually got off to a great start this past year, going 6-2 during the first half of the season. However, as Newton struggled, so did the Panthers in the second half, losing seven of their last eight games to finish 7-9 and out of the playoffs.
Newton, who played his collegiate football at Auburn University, was originally selected by the Panthers with the first overall pick of the 2011 NFL Draft.
He has since made three Pro Bowl appearances, including the 2015 campaign in which he threw for 3,837 yards, 35 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while completing 59.8 percent of his passes and recording a passer rating of 99.4 en route to winning the MVP award. Newton also led the Panthers to 15 wins and a Super Bowl appearance that year, where they lost to the Denver Broncos.
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