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Cam Newton got candid about getting fired by ESPN.
The day that Matt Patricia and Bill Belichick released me from the New England Patriots was the day that nothing else could surprise me in business, Newton said on his 4th & 1 podcast, Newton spent the 2020 season with New England in a year to forget.
He went 7-8 in 15 starts, and threw 10 interceptions to eight touchdowns.
The Patriots released Newton in 2021 ahead of the roster cutdown deadline.
Newton joined ESPN in 2024 and appeared on First Take alongside Stephen A.
Smith.
The 37-year-old drew the ire of the Patriots fanbase several times during the 2025 season when Newton constantly criticized the team and quarterback Drake Maye.
Newton, on several occasions, referred to New Englands success as fools gold, and often said Maye was not a game-changer, but rather a game manager.
He often dismissed Maye as a top quarterback in the league.
The former NFL quarterback and 2015 MVP was among the mass layoffs made by ESPN.
Tom Pelissero, Karl Ravech and Ryan Clark were also laid off.
Newton signed a multi-year extension with the network in 2025 to expand his role on First Take further.
That extension lasted 11 months.
I want you to learn one rule about the times we live in right now, Newton said.
if you dont own your own platform youre gonna get overlooked, bypassed and be extinct like dinosaurs.
You cannot, you will not, make me hate my experience with ESPN, Newton added.