By Ty Anderson, 985TheSportsHub.com
The No. 1 jerseys are flying off the shelves in New England.
And at the second-best clip in all of football, in fact, with Cam Newton ranking No. 2 among all jersey sales to begin the 2020 NFL season, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. In fact, the only jersey that’s selling more than Newton’s No. 1 is Tom Brady’s new No. 12, this time being worn in Buccaneers colors following Brady’s offseason exit from New England.
Overall, jerseys sales are up almost 40 percent compared to last year, according to Fanatics.
Newton’s start in Patriot blue is off to a promising start, too, with the 31-year-old totaling 155 yards through the air on 15-for-19 passing and 75 yards and two scores on the ground in a 21-11 win over the Dolphins in Week 1. (Brady, meanwhile, struggled in his Tampa Bay debut, throwing two picks in a 34-23 loss to the Saints.)
Newton’s Patriot debut obviously didn’t come with any No. 1 jerseys in the stands, as the Patriots will play in an empty Gillette Stadium through September, but the former MVP is adapting to the ‘new normal’ in more ways than one.
“Well, for one, this is the new normal and I think it’s time for everybody, including myself, to realize this is what it’s like,” Newton said after the win. “I think it came full circle today. For me to just kind of realize that I’m a New England Patriot and I’m just going to embrace this whole moment.
“I’m just so blessed to have this opportunity, man. To, number one, be affiliated with an organization. Knowing that in itself is a blessing. To get a win, that’s another added plus. But, yet through it all, this has been a strenuous, long process for me, and yet through it all, it’s just been gratifying, and I just had such a sense of gratitude to the New England Patriots and to this team, just to give all that I could possibly give and hell or high water, finish today at this particular time with us going home with a win.”
Newton and the Patriots will have a Sunday Night Football meeting with the Seahawks next Sunday.