When the New England Patriots — fresh out of a quarterback following Tom Brady’s exit to Tampa Bay Buccaneers — picked up Newton, a lot of NFL experts thought the Patriots got a bargain.
But in the last few weeks Newton and the Patriots have struggled, losing two in a row, with Newton throwing five interceptions (2 in one game and 3 in another) in the past couple of weeks.
Newton was playing so badly last Sunday, he was benched in the second half. And former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jeff Garcia thinks he know why Newton’s gameplay has been so terrible… it’s his wardrobe. Thanks, Jeff.
As ridiculous as it sounds, Garcia thinks Newton draws too much unnecessary attention to himself.
“You go into this game with 2 touchdowns, 4 interceptions, you threw what, 3 more interceptions? You get yanked in the 2nd half, there’s nothing good going your way. Why are you dressing like that to bring more attention to yourself? I’d be trying to ask the equipment managers ‘Put me in your jock sock cart and sneak me in the back door’ and I’ll show up on the field and do the best that I can.”
Oddly enough, Newton agreed with the former quarterback’s assessment, but says he’s not changing his style, telling WEEI,
“I know I come off to so many different people so many different ways, and that’s fine. You know what, he’s exactly right. But, I’m not changing the way I dress. I’m sorry.”
Maybe the recent downturn in Newton’s performance has nothing to do with the way he dresses, maybe it’s because he was out for a few days with COVID-19, and that several Patriot players opted out because of health concerns. Or it could be his collection of babushka scarves.
