Cam Newton, who is coming back from a shoulder injury suffered last season, certainly wanted to make it through his first preseason game without any hiccups.
His shoulder seems fine, but Newton was forced to leave Thursday's Panthers-Patriots preseason game in the first quarter with a foot/ankle injury.
After the game, Cam was spotted wearing a walking boot:
Tough sight for Panthers fans…
Cam Newton left Gillette Stadium tonight in a walking boot
(via @NBC10_FrankCarp) pic.twitter.com/wJlpVxJd8G
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) August 23, 2019
That's the bad news. The good news, per NFL.com's Ian Rapoport, is that it "doesn't appear to be serious," and is described as a sprain not a break.
Serious or not, the regular season begins in just a couple of weeks. A non-serious injury could still put his Week 1 status in jeopardy, which is why some sportsbooks have taken precautionary measures.
DraftKings and PointsBet sportsbooks have both taken the Rams-Panthers Week 1 game off the board, while other books like FanDuel have kept lines up.
The Panthers had been straddling the key number of +3 across the market, with some books posting +3 (-120) and others moving the line to +2.5. The Rams are currently a very popular pick, commanding 75% of spread bets — up from 71% at the start of last night's game.
The Panthers, on the other hand, had been one of the sharper selections of Week 1 thus far. Sports Insights' Bet Signals have tracked a whopping 11 sharp money indicators on Cam's squad compared to none on the Rams.
And while Carolina is receiving just 25% of the bets, it's getting 36% of the cash.
This game joins the Colts-Chargers and Giants-Cowboys as Week 1 games to be taken off the board at some sportsbooks. We will keep you posted as more information becomes available.
