Cam Newton Out At ESPN Following Major Budget Cuts

Cam Newton signed a multi-year deal with ESPN just last Summer, which promised to give him a prominent role on the network's flagship debate show, First Take. He would sit opposite Stephen A. Smith during football season, and would break down the biggest storylines from the weekend slate of games.

For many, he was an unofficial replacement for Shannon Sharpe, who was let go following a scandal. Newton was a bit of a polarizing figure on the network, although it was clear that he knew his stuff. After all, he is a former NFL MVP who even played in a Super Bowl.

Unfortunately, Newton's time at ESPN has already come to an unceremonious end. According to Yahoo Sports, it was confirmed today that Newton would not be returning to the network. He has been laid off as part of the network's most recent round of cuts.

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Newton should find solace in the fact that he isn't the only prominent figure to have lost his job. Ryan Clark and Bart Scott have also lost their roles at ESPN. Clark's situation was worse, as he found out about the cuts while he was on air for NFL Live.

His situation is one that has earned lots of scrutiny. Some feel as though ESPN did him dirty following an on-air argument with NFL insider Peter Schrager. As for Newton, it is unclear why he was subjected to this decision. Perhaps the network felt his contributions to First Take weren't giving them a return on investment.

Ultimately, ESPN does this every few years. They make cuts to pay their big stars more money. Usually, this is done in service of Stephen A. Now, it is being done to appease Pat McAfee, who is about to receive $60 million per year.

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