Cam Newton hasn’t missed a beat post-career. He’s started a wildly successful podcast called 4&1 With Cam Newton and continued to remain in the podcast world with appearances on various popular media outlets.
The latest being Club Shay Shay with Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe, where he had some pretty nonsensical comments regarding the Falcons‘ acquisition of Kirk Cousins.
. @CameronNewton on @KirkCousins8 $180M Contract: @AtlantaFalcons Could’ve Got @Lj_era8, @justnfields, @MichaelVick & Him
"If you give Kirk Cousins my résumé, he probably would've got more. But I'm tripping, but I'm bitter, but I'm mad. I'm not. I'm just exposing the truth." pic.twitter.com/ILaWsFDEXH
— Club Shay Shay (@ClubShayShay) April 10, 2024
Newton proceeds to claim for $180 million that the Falcons could have had Cam Newton, Justin Fields, and Michael Vick. He also states Cousins would have gotten more if he had his resume. Shannon Sharpe adds that if the Falcons had just given up a couple of first-round picks, they could have had Lamar Jackson as well.
There’s so much nonsense in this clip that it’s almost hard for me to wrap my head around. Michael Vick, Cam Newton, and Justin Fields were all around at different points in time. Individually, Kirk Cousins is better than all of them, except for maybe one year of Cam Newton when he won NFL MVP in 2015. So, yes, the Falcons should be willing to pay him more than any three of those guys.
But he also seems to be talking about them as a package. First, why would the Falcons need three quarterbacks? Secondly, I imagine the Falcons would also much rather have Kirk Cousins than two retired quarterbacks and Justin Fields, who they could have acquired for a sixth-round pick.
Whatever this is, it’s utter nonsense. Cousins has had a wildly more successful career than any of Vick, Newton, or Fields. Context also matters. When Newton was at his peak, the top quarterbacks weren’t getting paid $200+ million.
Smells like bitterness.
Now, to Sharpe’s comments on Lamar Jackson. I won’t spend too much time on this because I’ve spoken about this ad nauseam. Any talking head that is still spewing the narrative that Lamar Jackson was available to any team, not just the Falcons, is operating in ignorance.
The Ravens were never going to let Lamar Jackson walk. They would have matched any offer sheet he signed. The only way someone could have pried Jackson out of Baltimore is if they offered him a contract so outrageous the Ravens wouldn’t have matched, like $300 million guaranteed, plus giving up two first-round picks.
Essentially, negotiating with Lamar Jackson last offseason would have just been doing the Ravens’ bidding for them. He wasn’t available, which is why the Falcons didn’t pursue him.
Shannon Sharpe is one of the best in the business today, and I’ve actually really enjoyed this second act from Cam Newton. He generally offers a unique insight into these kinds of conversations, but this entire back and forth is absurd. The Falcons organization should be held accountable for a lot of mistakes, but signing Kirk Cousins is the least of their worries.
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Photographer: John Byrum/Icon Sportswire
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