Cam Newton said his interaction with Buffaloes quarterback Shedeur Sanders, ahead of Colorado’s 48-21 win over Central Florida last Saturday, was “contentious.”
Sanders, who appeared disinterested in talking with the 11-year NFL veteran, walked off and left Newton looking confused, as seen in a video that went viral online.
“I did have a conversation with Shedeur,” Newton said Thursday on his “4th & 1” podcast, while reflecting on the uneasy encounter at FBC Mortgage Stadium. “It was contentious. It was a little awkward, not only with Shedeur, but also with [Buffaloes star] Travis [Hunter].”
In the video, Newton was heard telling other people on the field at the time that Sanders said “I’m on some weird s–t.”
During the latest installment of his podcast, Newton explained that he didn’t blame the media for making it out to be something bigger, because even he was taken aback by it.
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“It was a little [like], ‘wait hold up, wait what,’” Newton said while making a surprised face and cocking back his head. He also clarified at the end of the podcast that Hunter was just joking.
“You beefing with me? I’m not beefing with you. I don’t feel a certain type of way. I’ve always been a fan, make no mistake about it”
Without getting into details, Newton hinted that his previous remarks about Sanders — when he said the Buffaloes star doesn’t have a standout performance in his college career — caused the rift.
“I think to protect our conversation, and I think I need to and will be obedient to that — I think the difference between this age of athletes versus the age of athletes even when I was playing — it’s so direct to consumer,” Newton, who last played with the Carolina Panthers in 2021, said.
“And I even shared this with Shedeur. I said, ‘bro there is a lot of support for you and your father [Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders] and even Colorado. You don’t see that because people don’t naturally dwell on the good.’
“… And I think it’s not a misunderstanding than more so than he needs to understand that this is the big leagues now. But I also have to understand this, I have more power than I give myself sometimes. So let me not hold my self accountable too.
“But will say this, I owe a due diligence to myself the fans of this show and my fans overall to hold people in sports as a whole accountable … I am speaking the truth as I know it to be and I am saying that doesn’t always mean it’s right and it damn sure doesn’t mean it’s wrong. I’m just speaking the truth from what I know.
“So if I do say things like, ‘Shedeur, I don’t know if you have a game that he just let his whole heart out’ and it was like damn that mother f–ker is cold.
“He is a top prospect. He is a top-10 draft pick. There is no question about that. I think with our conversation, we were able to discuss, ‘bro I know more than people give you credit for.’”
Newton went on to explain that he isn’t bothered by those who don’t agree with his opinions — and that Sanders needs to understand that he’s on a higher level in the NIL era.
“At the end of the day, we had us a blast,” Newton said of his time in Central Florida.
The Buffaloes face the Kansas State Wildcats on Oct. 12.