When Cam Newton was drafted by the Carolina Panthers back in 2011, it was believed that the team's owner Jerry Richardson was completely against tattoos and that Newton wouldn't be allowed to get one. According to ESPN, Richardson did an interview a few years ago with Charlie Rose where he explained the time he asked Newton if he had any tattoos. When Newton said now, Richardson's reply was "Good. We want to keep it that way."
Newton got his first tattoo on Monday, which is interesting timing considering Richardson sold the team to David Tepper just six months ago. Although the quarterback was quick to shut down the connection.
"He NEVER said I could NOT get a tattoo or grow my HAIR,'' Newton posted on his Instagram story. "I was free to do WHATEVER I wanted to do! I should have said something the first time this came up years ago but I can not let this fly this time! I KNOW FOOTBALL SEASON IS OVER AND REPORTERS ARE SCRAMBLING FOR NEWS STORIES BUT THIS AIN'T IT! Stop with the s---s! 1OVE.''
Tattoo artist Keith "Bang Bang" McCurdy was the one who gave Newton his tattoo, which is a small design on his right hand, that hasn't been shown to the world yet. In the Instagram post above, McCurdy shared a picture of him and Newton, saying "first tattoo for @cameron1newton today- we had to sit down for this pic bc he makes me look short af 🤣 I’ll let y’all guess what he got, this should be fun. Thanks for the trust bro."
Newton is currently nursing an injury and may have to sit out the 2019 season. He is currently awaiting word on whether or not he will need surgery on his shoulder.