Cam Newton is on the hot seat but there's a bigger issue with the quarterback situation.

Quarterbacks who are inconsistent or who are average passers typically aren't starters in the modern NFL. Over the history of the NFL, this has been the case for the mobile quarterback. While there have been some exceptions over the last thirty years of the NFL, for one hundred years now; running quarterbacks have struggled as passers. 

This season the Patriots went out and signed Cam Newton. A quarterback who has one MVP to his name, a total of three winning seasons and five seasons of sub par passing. 

When Newton was signed, there were three clear groups. The Newton bandwagon, the Stidham bandwagon, and the racist bandwagon. The Stidham bandwagon did little to separate themselves from the racist group, while the Newton group lumped both together and said "One must be racist to like Stidham".

Cam Newton this season has shown he can run the football. That changes things but he is not a timing quarterback. He needs elite pass catchers to thrive because he has to see an open guy before he'll throw it. The Patriots entrie system and roster is built on a timing passing game.

Newton's one good game as a quarterback came against the worst team at covering receivers and stopping the pass. Against Seattle he put up 397 yards but is only throwing 150 yards average against everyone else. On top of that, Newton has seven interceptions and five fumbles on the season. 

Newton's play as a passer has been unbecoming of an NFL starter and before one says "he doesn't have open pass catchers", that's been proven false via coaches tape. He's hanging on to the ball too long and making poor decisions.

Meanwhile Jarrett Stidham has come in twice during to pressure situations where there was still hope for a comeback but Stidham failed to lead the Patriots from behind. Stidham is getting little to no snaps in practice and is playing at an equally level to Newton as a passer.

I have said wait until the Pats lose three more games or are eliminated mathematically from the playoffs before pulling Newton for the year. Why get Cam hurt if they want to keep him, and why not use the time to better evaluate Stidham and possibly make him better trade bait.

However, there is a strong opposition to Cam getting replaced at all this season. It's seen on the television and on social media. There are those who want Cam to further his progression with the offense, which is understandable. 

Then there are those who oppose benching Cam for Stidham because it's Jarret Stidham and when they give their explanation for that reasoning, for many it's cause he's a white quarterback. The racist bandwagon is mixed in with both quarterbacks' bandwagons.

Racism is a ugly thing and regardless of who the player is, who the person is; nobody should have to experience it in 2020. This season, two of our Patriots are dealing with hate and people wanting them to be held back or fired due to the color of their skin. The Patriots locker room and fan base needs to step up and say this will not be tolerated, whether it's from the media or the public.