Former NFL MVP Cam Newton called Super Bowl quarterback Brock Purdy of the San Francisco 49ers the “10th-best player on the team,” piling on to his previous criticism of the current MVP candidate. (Watch the video below.)
In comments on his “4th & 1” show posted to X Wednesday, the ex-Carolina Panthers quarterback dismissed Purdy as merely a “game manager” and not a “game-changer.”
Purdy, the final pick in the 2022 NFL draft, led the 49ers as a rookie to the NFC championship game last season. This season as the full-time starter, he threw for 4,280 yards and 31 touchdowns. He had a clutch second half in the NFC conference championship victory over Detroit to reach the Super Bowl against the Kansas City Chiefs.
But Newton has not been impressed.
“I’ve never said Brock Purdy was trash; what I did say is that Brock Purdy is a game manager,” he said. “That’s not hate, that’s just what I feel to be facts. But I still reserve the right to say this: To be labeled a game-changer, Brock Purdy has to be the best player on the offensive side of the ball. And that’s not the case.”
Newton called running back Christian McCaffrey, a former Panthers teammate, the best offensive threat on the Niners.
“I ain’t recanting shit,” Newton said in reference to similar remarks he’s made. “And if you really want to just be honest, if you add in the defensive talent, and you add in the offensive talent, Brock Purdy is the 10th-best player on this team.”
“OK, cool, did he have a great game?” Newton asked rhetorically. “Yes! Has he been playing out of his mind? Yes! Is he a quarterback that’s hot? Yes! But he’s still the 10th-best player on his team.”
In a snippet posted to X Thursday, Newton asked his audience to stop saying he was hating on Purdy, clarified that he thought Purdy was “good” and said he hoped that Purdy wins the Super Bowl.
Newton, who last played in 2021, is no stranger to stirring the pot.
On a podcast in 2022, he complained about women “who can’t cook” and “don’t know when to be quiet” and can’t “cater to a man’s needs.”