The New England Patriots announced they will be giving the No. 1 jersey number to quarterback Cam Newton. He wore that number in Carolina after joining the Panthers. In college, Newton wore No. 2, but when he joined the Panthers, incumbent starter Jimmy Clausen wouldn’t give the number to Newton. So he switched to No. 1.
No one on the Patriots roster — except the team’s mascot, Pat Patriot — currently wears that number. In fact, there haven’t been many to wear that number in New England’s history. He’s the fourth player in Patriots history to get it. Former kickers Tony Franklin, Eric Schubert and John Smith were the last players to wear the number, according to Pro Football Reference.
Newton joins a quarterback competition which includes Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer. They will compete for the starting job in a season when the Patriots are moving on from quarterback Tom Brady.
