Cam Newton, the top pick in the 2011 NFL Draft, offered an apology for his role in the viral shuffle that had broken out several days ago during a 7-on-7 youth football tournament.
The former NFL star quarterback explained that he had lost control of his emotions, something that he acknowledged was unacceptable.
“I’m disappointed in myself for letting it escalate to what it did and that’s what I’m apologetic to,” Newton said on Friday during the latest edition of his “4th and 1” podcast. “The truth of the matter is this: Me, being in my position, I should’ve never put myself in that position. That’s just the truth. That could’ve got ugly, for real.”
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A 22-second video surfaced on Sunday showed Newton being pushed, shoved and grabbed by three people near some steps. Police officers and security eventually intervened.
“It should not have been called for. Simple. And with that, I apologize to anybody affected,” Newton said, as he extended his apology to event organizers, players and parents.
Newton did not appear to throw any punches in the video and seemed to be fending people off.
While it remains unclear what had started the altercation, Newton did acknowledge that the trash talk during the game between him and former members of his C1N organization had carried over off the football field.
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“There was a lot of talking on both sides — on all sides, let’s just put it like that,” Newton said. “I don’t want to point the finger and say this person said that or that person said that. Am I saying this is the first time it happened or the last time it happened? It’s something that starts with words and should’ve ended with words.”
Newton said he’s glad the incident hadn’t taken a turn for the worse.
“There’s no excuse really,” Newton said. “It could have been a melee. More violence could have stemmed from that. It’s just not called for.”
Two of the men involved in the altercation, coaches TJ and Steph Brown, said that Newton’s actions throughout the weekend ultimately led to the physical skirmish that started with him grabbing Steph first before TJ threw a punch.
“It just should never have gotten to that,” TJ told Fox News Digital on Monday.
Newton, an Atlanta native, heads up the C1N football organization, which was founded in 2021 and focuses on developing young athletes’ skills in football by providing opportunities to compete at the highest level through 7-on-7 tournaments and other events.
After a nine-year run with the Carolina Panthers, Newton joined the New England Patriots in 2020 and returned to Carolina in 2021. He finished his NFL career with more than 32,000 passing yards, 194 throwing touchdowns, and 75 rushing touchdowns. Newton was named the league MVP in 2015.
Fox News’ Scott Thompson and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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