The Carolina Panthers lost a close one against the Washington Football Team in Week 11 on Sunday, though Cam Newton played well as he recorded two passing touchdowns without an interception.

Despite his brilliant performance that also included one rushing TD, Newton was on the receiving end of a major shade from one of his opponents. Apparently, according to Kimberley Martin of ESPN, one Washington player was heard shouting “I thought he was back?!” after their 27-21 win–a clear reference to the former NFL MVP.

Sunday's game between the Panthers and Washington has plenty of stories in it. For one, it's Cam Newton's first start in months after he was cut by the New England Patriots before the 2021 season and remained unsigned until Carolina came calling before Week 10.

Another one is that Newton and the Panthers would be facing their former coach in Ron Rivera, with whom Cam achieved a lot of personal and relative team success during their time together.

With that said, it's not a surprise why Washington players were motivated and so hyped to win the game, especially since it gives a strong statement of what Rivera can do and achieve with his new team.

However, Newton is definitely not the one to blame for the Panthers' loss. In fact, with the way he played, one could say he is truly back. Unfortunately, the Carolina defense just wasn't able to make life hard for Taylor Heinicke who went for three touchdowns on 16-of-22 pass completion.