Patriots' Cam Newton won't say if he's vaccinated against COVID-19

New England Patriots veteran quarterback Cam Newton missed time during the 2020 season, his first with the franchise, due to testing positive for COVID-19, and he said in February that his brief absence set him and the entire New England offense back through the remainder of the campaign. 

The one-time NFL Most Valuable Player returned to the Patriots via a one-year contract he signed in March, but that was before the club spent pick No. 15 of the 2021 draft on Alabama Crimson Tide signal-caller Mac Jones. Knowing Newton could be sidelined at any time due to the league's COVID-19 protocols, a reporter reasonably asked him Thursday if he has been vaccinated against the virus. 

"It’s too personal to discuss," Newton responded, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. "I’ll just keep it at that." 

Most have assumed the New England starting job is Newton's to lose through at least Week 1 of the regular season, but head coach Bill Belichick raised eyes on Thursday when he said both Newton and Jones are pushing each other to improve in practices. "Competition makes us all better, so it’s been healthy and we’ll see how it goes," Belichick added at that time. 

Meanwhile, Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson returned to work Friday after testing positive for COVID-19 for the second time since last fall.