Cam Newton was limited all week with soreness in his throwing shoulder despite not appearing on the final Carolina Panthers injury report for a Week 8 game against the Baltimore Ravens. While there was never any doubt that Newton would play, his limitations led to some hesitation about how prepared Carolina is to deal with losing their franchise quarterback.
Many teams throughout the NFL would look significantly different without their lead signal caller. Imagine for a moment the New England Patriots without Tom Brady, Green Bay Packers without Aaron Rodgers or New Orleans Saints minus Drew Brees – all would immediately suffer on offense and the Panthers are no different.