CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera is still avoiding the elephant in the room when it comes to Cam Newton's future.
"Until he's 100 percent, we're not going to address it," Rivera said during his weekly news conference Tuesday morning. "The young man has done everything we've asked. I'm not going to put pressure on him."
Kyle Allen has been shining as the Panthers starting quarterback since week 3, when he got his second career NFL start during the game in Arizona.
The Panthers have won four straight with Allen in the starting position, most recently in London this past Sunday in a redemption game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
If recent headlines are any indication, the days of Cam at the helm could be in the past.
"Cam Newton trade whispers begin with significant interest," reads the New York Post headline. "Has Cam Newton lost the Panthers' starting QB job?" asks another headline from ESPN.com.
In a WCNC NBC Charlotte viewer poll Monday, Allen received overwhelming support for the starting position by WCNC viewers.
Asked "Who should be the Panthers Quarterback," 92% of WCNC viewers overwhelmingly voted for Allen in the online poll.
Questions about Cam's shoulder after week one quickly turned to questions about Cam's foot after week two. Initially reported as a re-aggravation of a mid-foot sprain he suffered during the third preseason game against the Patriots, turned to a lisfranc injury, according to Cam Newton on his vlog.
Without a publicly released diagnosis or recovery plan, the weekly routine for fans is like groundhog's day: Will Cam play this week?
Another ESPN report out Monday speculates Newton could return to practice after this weekend's bye week. The network cited an unnamed source.
If the recent WCNC poll is any indication, some fans may have already moved into a new camp: one centering around Kyle Allen.
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