Cam Newton called his decision-making in Sunday’s loss ‘inexcusable’

"I think that's the most frustrating thing."

Cam Newton paces the sideline during Sunday's game against the 49ers. –Maddie Meyer/Getty Images

Trevor Hass, Sports Producer

October 25, 2020

When asked to dissect his interception to San Francisco 49ers linebacker Fred Warner on Sunday, Patriots quarterback Cam Newton took a long pause to locate that particular play in his mental archives.

“That’s sad when you have to think about it,” said Newton, who threw three picks on the day in New England’s 33-6 loss.

Newton then clarified that he saw Warner and lost him moments later before eying Jakobi Meyers too much and making his intentions obvious. He said he should have just thrown the ball away.

“The decision-making is inexcusable, and I think that’s the most frustrating thing,” Newton said.

He finished the day 9 for 15 for 98 yards before coach Bill Belichick replaced him with Jarrett Stidham early in the fourth quarter. Belichick made it clear the plan is “absolutely” to stick with Newton as the team’s starter going forward.

Newton knows he’ll have to piece together a far better performance next week for the Patriots to have a chance against the Buffalo Bills, and he’s eager for the challenge of getting back on track. When asked how confident he is that he can be the guy to help the Patriots regroup, he responded: “Without a doubt.”

“It’s a lot of it mental,” Newton said. “I’m not going to point fingers at nobody else being the fact that I just didn’t get the job done. And when you have a performance like that going against a team like this, what happened tonight will happen again. So like I said, it’s a distasteful taste and feeling, but yet here moving forward you just got to get on a roll. We just got to get one.”

Cam Newton Live Postgame Press Conference https://t.co/S689QDkMR6

— New England Patriots (@Patriots) October 26, 2020

Newton said his throwing shoulder is “fine,” and a non-issue. He doesn’t think his woes recently are a product of a mechanical breakdown. Rather, he believes he’s been “pressing too much” and his energy has been off. He said it’s not rewarding going out there with “this aura about yourself that’s not you,” adding that he’s “put this team in a rut” of late.

He noted that it was a “very disappointing” game, adding that the crux of his personal struggles is him not playing well. It may sound simple, but he’s confident the best fix is to execute at a higher level.

"I'll take that" – @fred_warner, probably #SFvsNE on CBS pic.twitter.com/vlxISF98kJ

— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) October 25, 2020

As for his lack of a connection with wide receiver Julian Edelman – whose lone catch came on a pass from Jarrett Stidham late – Newton acknowledged they have have to “figure it out.”

“Our Wi-Fi is definitely off,” Newton said. “And it’s frustrating because knowing the person Julian is and knowing the body of work that he puts in each and every week and day and from preparation to biometrically with his body, you fall in love with a person like that. And with me, I just want to win. I just want to find a way to win. And here of late, that hasn’t been the case.”