He’s eccentric and self-assured. “I have made mistakes. Tom Brady got that treatment for a long time.
The group of Super Bowl banners at Gillette Stadium will be getting a new addition in September when the New England Patriots celebrate their sixth championship before hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers in a Week 1 matchup.Gillette Stadium's Twitter account posted a photo Wednesday showing the preparation for the Super Bowl LIII banner.The Patriots don't have a ton of room left in that area of the stadium for championship banners. As a result of the recent influx of championships, the Patriots have had to move their banners around to find a spot that held enough room.The team originally hung their three Super Bowl banners from 2001-2004 from the walkways in the southeast corner of the stadium. Randy Moss.Without fail, the approval or disapproval of each guy was linked to how they were playing. We’re still gonna watch (Newton) closely. I’m glad he’s like that, because if he wasn’t, you know, he probably would have faded long before now.”Aside from standard press conference obligations, Newton doesn’t speak much with conventional media. There might only be room for seven of them based on how the current ones are sized. A coach who thinks doing one’s job is not cause for breaking out the sheet cake?The Ringer’s Tyler R. Tynes spent a year reporting on Newton for his narrative podcast -- One of the people Tynes spoke with was Newton’s father, Cecil.“He is not so hypersensitive about whether you like him or not,” said Cecil Newton. How much will McDaniels commit to letting Cam be Cam?“I’m not going to say he’s going to ‘conform’ because he doesn’t need to conform,” said Blackmon. If there was a time he wanted to be universally embraced, that seems to have passed.Speaking with Tynes last year, Newton said, “I’m in a position now, man, where I’m comfortable in my skin,” he told me. Determined? All rights reserved ( This is the team’s third banner raising in the past five seasons. “But he’s going to listen to coach Belichick. When they won their fourth title, the team hung them on concrete pillars flanking the video board. But the past year was good fertilizer to make doubt take root.The Panthers went 23-23 with Newton as their starter from 2016-19. There’s no doubt Newton is aware of all of it.Into race-conscious New England at a time when the nation is more attuned than ever to racial issues comes a demonstrative Black quarterback who’s faster and stronger but less accurate than his absurdly accomplished predecessor who’s always been credited with having a mind like a super-computer.How Newton is received, the tone of coverage, word choices made in describing him relative to Brady, judgments made on his clothes, demeanor — all will be subject to scrutiny.This isn’t just a great player possibly succeeding the best-ever. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)New England may just now be getting into the thick of spring, but football isn’t that far off. A port-a-potty dominates the lower middle of the frame. Singular winner. Polished. Few if any quarterbacks have taken the amount of physical punishment Newton has.Does he arrive in New England trying to recapture or reinvent?Is Newton prepared to be treated as a cog in the wheel? Chad Ochocinco. Newton isn’t as much a chameleon. We don’t need all these antics.”In his conversation with Tynes, Newton sounded like a man who believes he’s always evolving.“I make mistakes,” he told Tynes. So too is this region’s defensiveness about that perception. Colleges do it so why can't we, Bill Belichick saysBill Belichick 'totally respects and supports' Patriots players opting outHere's what Patriots coach Bill Belichick thinks of having zero 2020 preseason gamesNFL opt outs: Complete list of players who won't play in 2020 seasonBill Belichick reacts to Patriots signing Cam Newton: 'Glad it worked out'Ex-Patriots WR Antonio Brown suspended for first eight games of 2020 NFL seasonJulian Edelman shares epic photo of workout with Cam Newton, Patriots WRsChase Winovich reacts to Steve Belichick gracing 'Nantucket Magazine' coverPatriots' Cam Newton seems fired up about arriving to Gillette StadiumEven with cap windfall, Patriots should still spend carefullyPatriots' Stephon Gilmore 'feeling more motivated than ever' after NFL Top 100 rankingPatriots Talk Podcast: Should Patriots spend newfound cap cash or roll it over?LeSean McCoy 'very excited' to join Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski on BuccaneersBucs' Cameron Brate admits Tom Brady-led workouts were 'calculated risk'NFL rumors: Patriots add to QB depth chart, re-sign Brian LewerkePatriots' Julian Edelman among biggest NFL Top 100 players of 2020 snubsPatriots' Matthew Slater to play in 2020 after nearly opting out, per reportHighlights from Tom Brady's first Buccaneers practice are a bit surreal The news was first reported by the Lee joins Dont'a Hightower, Patrick Chung, Marcus Cannon, Brandon Bolden, Danny Vitale, and Najee Toran as Patriots players who have decided not to play in 2020. And the fact that, you know, I’m in this place of influence. It’s hard to even compare the way the two men play the position so everyone already knows there’s no stylistic comparison.Newton’s a megastar so he’s not going to be rattled by the attention — though it will be interesting to see if he can smilingly shrug off criticism as Brady usually did.But there’s also the issue of race. Stoic? Same salary as Brian Hoyer. The Patriots haven't even taken the practice field for their first workout of training camp yet, but their roster keeps getting smaller.Wide receiver Marqise Lee is the latest New England player to opt out of the 2020 season — the seventh Patriot to do so in the last few days.