Is Cam closer to retirement than we think?

[NAS]

With Luck retiring due to relentless injuries, it has to be a concern that Cam may also retire sooner than we would like due to injuries.  He has played with pain and injury since 2016.  If this OL can’t protect, I am afraid he may not play much longer. It would be a shame because today’s game is supposed to be setup for  QBs to play longer just like Brady or Brees.  No, this isn’t a reactionary thread, just an honest question given the trend. 

[SBiii]

Yes.

[ellis]

We dared to touch this subject the other day in our Game Notes piece.

Mind you, not even from a retirement standpoint, but simply from a “you’re 30 now so let’s start getting rid of the ball little quicker” perspective. 

I can’t tell you how many people flamed me on twitter and reddit over that simple premise. It’s fine, I don’t give a crap. The more the merrier. Fans will fan.

But damn, news like this really does bring it home: Tom Brady is the exception, not the rule. You take hits, and it takes a toll. And that’s worth keeping an eye on. 

No, I don’t think he’s going to retire in the next few years. But I’m not gonna call people crazy for speculating over it. I think tonight’s a good lesson for everybody to keep all that in mind.

[ForJimmy]

Luck never loved the game and competing like Cam does.

[GoPanthers123]

Next one is Drew Brees.  

[ellis]

Brees is a bit like Brady. He’s pocket savvy, and the offense is designed to protect his ass. He doesn’t get hit a whole lot. Not nearly as much as Luck.

Or Newton.

[L-TownCat]

Go back to the Cam draft threads.  We all knew we could get maybe 10 bomb ass years out of Cam before the toll forced him away from what makes him special. That time frame is almost up.  He's got more quality years left, but only if he refines his passing game.  Bulldozing into the end zone should fade from his bag.

[countryboi]

man Cam love this football life, he one of those they going to have to drag me off the field types. I just dont see him retiring like Luck

[SBiii]

2 minutes ago, ForJimmy said:

Luck never loved the game and competing like Cam does.

Interesting observation....

....what do you base it on?

Unrelated to your observation....for perspective, Cam has played 123 regular season games which is slightly less than 2/3rds the number of regular season games Joe Montana played in his career (193).

Were we to interpolate on a like basis, this would imply about 4.5 more seasons for Cam.  However, given Cam 's style of play and the attendant beating he has taken, on a relative basis one might expect Cam would play fewer overall games than Montana....

....which would result in about 3 more seasons.

If the over/under is 3-seasons....what are you taking?

[Mage]

I’ve thought this for awhile.  Newton has so many business ventures outside of football, if his game fell off I think he’d definitely retire

[Silent Majority]

Uh boy

[KillerKat]

Better question is how many years has Rivera taken off Cam's career?

[Zaximus]

1 hour ago, stbugs said:

I don’t think Cam is at all similar to Luck. Luck retiring is a unicorn at his age and star level. Also, Cam with his shoulder injuries, rolling his car, etc. has still missed only 5 games in 8 years. Luck has missed 26 in 7 years, all in the past 4 and looked likely to missed more time this year. Assuming he missed some games this year, that would be almost 2 complete seasons in 5 years.

Remember the Luke is done threads. Cam isn’t going anywhere. Luck is Luck and it wouldn’t surprise me if his injury was worse than we know. Don’t forget the he’ll be ready for week 1 turned into Luck missing a season. A calf or ankle injury doesn’t keep you out of the entire offseason unless it’s far worse than we know, regardless of what their drunk owner says.

Or Luck is the new precedent for saving your body when you have enough money.

[hepcat]

If anyone here or anywhere doesn’t think Cam is close to retirement, go watch a lowlight reel of all the huge hits he’s taken over the years.