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One misunderstanding could open the door for a massive opportunity for rookie first-round pick Mac Jones.

Cam Newton is sidelined until Thursday under established “re-entry protocol” for unvaccinated players who leave the team. Newton had team permission to travel to an appointment, the Patriots maintain, but a “misunderstanding” led to Newton failing to follow required steps to avoid quarantine.

“On Saturday, Cam Newton traveled to a club-approved medical appointment that required him to leave the New England area. He received daily Covid tests, which were all negative. Due to a misunderstanding about tests conducted away from NFL facilities, and as required by the NFL-NFLPA protocols, Cam will be subject to the five-day entry cadence process before returning to the facility. Cam will continue participating virtually in team activities and return to the club facility on Thursday, August 26.”

Misunderstanding or not, the ballyhooed “Patriot Way” was built on the premise of players maximizing their every opportunity, the way Tom Brady did as an unheralded backup filling in for an injured Drew Bledsoe two decades ago.

Without Newton available for practices this week, Jones is getting every rep with the starting offense and building on what offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels described as “a really good camp.”

According to reports, the Patriots are not averse to going with Jones in Week 1 and are frustrated by Newton’s current predicament.

While circumstances have changed in light of the former NFL MVP’s absence, Belichick and McDaniels said last week that Newton was the starter.

–Field Level Media