CHARLOTTE, N.C. — One of the Carolina Panthers' biggest question marks in the offseason was Cam Newton's shoulder.
The team tried to figure out what was wrong with it and what the next step should be.
The issue came back to the forefront this week after a story about owner David Tepper and the Panthers potentially sitting Newton next season started circulating Tuesday night.
"Asked to compare Newton's situation with that of Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck, owner David Tepper said Tuesday, 'If you told me he took a year off and could recover and be fully recovered and everything else, and that's what it took, an extra year, why wouldn't you do [that]?'" the article stated.
The meeting was for print media only, and conflicting reports came out of the room -- saying nothing was mentioned about sitting Newton, and the statement was more of a hypothetical comment.
What's not hypothetical is the problem with Newton's shoulder. In a Monday Night Football postgame press conference, the quarterback said doctors were still trying to figure out what exactly was wrong.
"Just to make it public that I've tried and done everything," he said.
Alan Tyson is a physical therapist and president of Architect Sports Performance. He was recently selected to speak about Newton to a group of about 100 surgeons and therapists with the American Society of Shoulder and Elbow Therapists.
While he hasn't seen Newton and can't comment directly on what's wrong, Tyson has his theories.
"So the more it rubs, the more inflammation I get. And so, not that it's difficult to diagnose, it's just hard to gradually get strong enough, again, if I have that imbalance," Tyson said.
Newton was limited much of the season before the Panthers shut him down the final two weeks, something Tyson said likely helped.
"Kind of the myth is how much they have to throw. Usually, it comes down to flexibility, strength, and some mechanical issues. So we keep addressing those, addressing those and letting him throw later on," Tyson said.
While questions still linger about what's next for Newton, the offseason and time away is no doubt helping.
"It's a good time for him to get better without trying to throw Friday or Saturday, and then not getting on Sunday. And what we forget about, too, is anytime he gets hit or he's running and he slides or gets tackled or whatever, that's going to irritate the shoulder," Tyson said.