The New England Patriots made headlines recently for signing former Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton to a one-year deal. Previous reports suggested the Patriots didn’t have ‘immediate interest’ as of late March but that clearly changed.

Prior to Newton being signed, the Patriots were expected to start Jarrett Stidham at quarterback. They passed on selecting a quarterback in the 2020 NFL Draft, displaying their confidence in him. However, it was always a possibility New England could sign a veteran before training camp.

Newton appeared in just two games last season due to a foot injury. The possibility of his return wasn’t ruled out as he was rehabbing, but that didn’t amount to sufficient progress. The Panthers ultimately placed him on Injured Reserve, subsequently ending his 2019 season.

The year prior, Newton participated in 14 regular-season games and completed a career-best 67.9 percent of his throws for 3,395 passing yards, 24 passing touchdowns, and 13 interceptions. He also added 488 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in the ground-game.

The Panthers posted a 6-8 record during Newton’s starts in 2018. The team’s lack of success was hardly the fault of the quarterback position considering the underwhelming supporting personnel the former MVP had to work with.

With taking all of that into consideration, let’s look at three ways signing Cam Newton will impact the Patriots in 2020.