The arrival of ex-Carolina Panther Cam Newton to the New England Patriots has generated massive offseason buzz. Whether the former 2015 MVP can regain his old form is still unknown at this point. However, former All-Pro defensive back Rodney Harrison feels Newton signing has already done a lot to lift the team's spirits. This is in fact without him even setting foot on the field yet.

This take, Harrison shared during a feature on NBC's Pro Football Talk.

“As a player, think about it,” Harrison said Thursday on NBC Sports’ “Pro Football Talk.” “If I’m Devin McCourty and I just lose Tom Brady and all of a sudden in the offseason I’m like, ‘What the heck is this Jarrett Stidham gonna do? As a defense, do we really have to be the No. 1 defense in the league to win now?’

Then all of a sudden Cam Newton signs, you’re like, ‘Holy crap. We have a legitimate chance. Like, we can win this division.’ You automatically forget about Tom Brady and you feel like you can give yourself a really legitimate chance of winning that division and getting back into the playoffs and having success.”

Obviously, there's still a lot of work to be done for the Newton signing to be considered a success. But just the fact that the man replacing Tom Brady reached some pretty lofty heights himself gives Patriots fans a glimmer of hope. If there's a coach that can unlock Newton's talent again, it's Bill Belichick. The veteran QB already seems to be getting with the program, unveiling a more toned-down demeanor Wednesday when he arrive in Beantown.

Whether it will all translate to on-field success for Newton and the Patriots remains to be seen at this point. But if you're a betting man, I wouldn't go against it.