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FOXBOROUGH, Mass .– New England Patriots quarterback Cam Newton reflected on his tough 2020 season in a long and passionate video conference Thursday that felt like an exit interview in which he was saying goodbye .
“My only regret was that I wish I had more time to dissect what I was getting myself into,” Newton said when asked if there was anything he could have done differently to contribute. to more personal success.
“I’ve been in this league long enough to always downplay, like, ‘Dude, we don’t need a preseason. We don’t need OTA. We are ready to go. “Yeah, maybe if I was still in the system I came from. But to learn this system, it just takes more time, it takes more real reps to go through somehow because it doesn’t there are so many things that you can sort of invent.
“You could put on your eyelashes. You could do your eyebrows. You could put on your lipstick. The mascara and the lip liner. But sooner or later it’s going to rain and the real real you will show it. And unfortunately it showed. – – not necessarily the way I wanted. “
Newton, who spent most of the offseason as a free agent before signing a modest one-year contract with the Patriots on July 8, leads New England in their season finale on Sunday against the Jets from Visiting New York (CBS, 1 p.m. ET). Although he says he doesn’t know what the future holds, he has hinted that this will be his last game for the Patriots (6-9), noting that there are teammates he plans to play with. always to have relationship in the future.
In 14 games as a Tom Brady substitute this season, Newton is 221 of 338 for 2,415 passing yards, with five touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He added 513 rushing yards on 126 carries, with 12 touchdowns. Newton tested positive for the coronavirus in early October, missed a game, and played on an abdominal injury in early December.
But Newton said the hardest part of 2020 is being away from his kids, which included two missing birthday parties, Christmas, and important moments like his son’s first steps.
“All of those things, being unemployed for 86 nights, yeah, it’s tough. Having injuries, yeah, it’s tough. Going through this season and you can kind of guess how much of a media market Boston is. heavyweight …. The slander that comes with living up to TB12 expectations, yes, that is all difficult. [But] none of this is even a second of not being able to see your children. And then on top of that, do you suck? Ah, man.
“For me, I can always be better. I can always be more consistent. Some of the throws I had, I wish I had picked them up. But yet, no one cares about the circumstances, no one cares about the waves or the tide that is in the water. They just care about you just bringing this boat back, and I haven’t done it regularly enough. “
Newton, 31, called himself a “mentally tough SOB” when asked what he learned about himself, saying his focus on optimism helped.
“It was almost like going under the hood for me – working on my attitude, my patience, my faith, the resilient side of you. What are you going to do when things aren’t going so well? he said.
“Because sometimes in that year it was like, ‘God, what are you doing? What are you trying to tell me? ‘ It teaches you patience, it teaches you to have faith and understand that, listen, sooner or later you’re going to have a break.
“I’m not looking for documents. And 2020 I’m about to sign, seal [and] tie this year, tie a big knot on it. I can buy every lock and key and throw it all away. I don’t want to see any part of 2020. But it has made me a better person. I believe that. “
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