If you are a Carolina Panthers fan, you should get used to the name Matt Rhule. Indeed, he’s the guy in charge. A few days ago, he signed an unprecedented seven-year contract presented to him by Carolina owner David Tepper.
The owner liked the way he talked, his upbringing, and everything in between. Therefore, it’s going to be Rhule’s say on everything in Carolina. They’re even talking about him having general manager duties with the team employing a GM named Marty Hurney.
Obviously the biggest issue is what he will do with former league MVP Cam Newton. Newton has lost 10 games in a row dating back to the 2018 season. He’s coming off left foot surgery to repair a Lisfranc injury suffered in the first few weeks of 2019.
Panthers new coach Matt Rhule declines to comment on Cam Newton's future in Carolina: "I have the utmost respect for him and what he's done"https://t.co/JZYFXrzKJs pic.twitter.com/lh8fZuZOAE
— Around The NFL (@AroundTheNFL) January 8, 2020
However, Newton is still one of the biggest talents that the league has ever seen. Here’s what Rhule had to say, and it’s tough to know what he’s thinking even if you read this a few times.
“I certainly look forward to working with him. I hope so. But I don’t know enough about, really, everything that’s kinda happening right now.”
Well, that sounds convincing. Remember – in his interview – Rhule had a plan for everything including his staff he wanted to hire and the offense he wanted to run. He turned around Baylor in two short years. Obviously he and the owner discussed what the plan is with Newton heading into 2020, he’s just doing a good job of not saying. He continued on his first statement.
“He’s a tremendous player. He’s a tremendous winner. He’s done a lot of great things, If I have a chance to coach him, I know exactly that I’m getting one of the best guys, best winners that the NFL’s seen.”
Whether or not Rhule gets the chance to coach Newton is entirely up to him. It seems like the writing is on the wall in Carolina, and Newton is about to become a casualty in his final year of his deal that shows fans why not to buy a jersey ever again. They have a short shelf life folks.
We will have more on what appear to be Newton’s final days in Carolina as training camp approaches.
