Cam Newton’s 2018 season ended early with a shoulder injury. He, and the team, do not want a repeat of that this year, so the former All-Pro quarterback is being handled with kid gloves in training camp. He’s on a pitch count and took a veteran’s day Thursday.
“(The shoulder is) still a work in progress,” Newton told reporters. “But I feel good. … I don’t want people to just assume Cam’s back. I’m putting a lot of work to get where I need to be. It’s a process.”
Cam Newton has said “still a work in progress” three times already.
— Bill Voth (@BillVothNFL) August 1, 2019
The process is expected to put Newton back on the field and healthy for Week 1’s match up with the NFC Champion Los Angeles Rams. In the 14 games he did play last year, Newton completed a career-high 67.9 percent of his passes for 3,395 yards and 24 touchdowns with 13 picks. He added 101 carries for 488 yards and four scores.
Panthers sign Tre Boston to a one-year deal
After a brief two-year sojourn in the western time zone, safety Tre Boston is returning to the team that drafted him. Carolina added Boston to its defensive backfield with a $3 million, one-year contract.
Carolina!!! 😁😁😁 pic.twitter.com/fXLEhwRPuf
— Tre Boston (@TreBos10) August 1, 2019
The Panthers originally drafted Boston in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft out of North Carolina. He emerged as a starter in this third season, but was cut loose after dealing with multiple nagging injuries. He re-emerged healthy with the Los Angeles Chargers in 2017 and moved to the Arizona Cardinals in 2018.
Last year, Boston started 13 games and played in 14, recording 79 tackles, one for a loss, nine passes defended, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and three interceptions.
Carolina sits Luke Kuechly Thursday
Star middle linebacker Luke Kuechly was held out of practice Thursday as a precaution due to his history of concussions. He was in a “pile up” during Wednesday’s practice and the team’s medical personnel pulled him from the field.
“They (the medical staff) came over to the side, they were talking to him (Kuechly),” head coach Ron Rivera said of Wednesday’s incident. “And they just felt out of precaution they just didn’t want to do anything else.”
Rivera says this was a pre-determined vet day for Luke Kuechly (along w other guys) and that his sitting out today was not health related.
— Jourdan Rodrigue (@JourdanRodrigue) August 1, 2019
Kuechly and Newton weren’t the only Panthers sitting. Christian McCaffrey, Greg Olsen, Kawann Short, Matt Paradis and Daryl Williams all were held out of practice.
