Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton has accepted some of the blame for the franchise's decision to fire offensive coordinator Joe Brady.
Brady was dismissed by Panthers head coach Matt Rhule earlier this week in the wake of their 33-10 loss to the Miami Dolphins.
The Panthers have lost three of their past four games and are 5-7 across the season, sitting second in the NFC South behind the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-3).
Newton, who returned to the Panthers last month for a second stint, has completed 29 of 52 attempts for 289 yards for three touchdowns in his three games for Carolina this season.
The quarterback failed to land any touchdowns with a 23.8 percent completion rate with two interceptions in the defeat to the Dolphins prior to their bye, making five of 21 attempts for 92 yards
"Do I think I had something to do with it?" Newton told reporters on Thursday when asked about Brady's dismissal. "The competitor in me, absolutely, yes. Because the truth of the matter is you don't lose your job because of success.
"Where I'm at now is doing what I can control to make sure that I have a job, too. Let's just be honest."
The Panthers' struggles on offense have been present before Newton's return to Carolina, having gone three straight games without a touchdown with Sam Darnold at QB.
Jeff Nixon has been handed the role as the Panthers' new offensive coordinator.
"I'm not going to lie, I'm proud to be in the position I'm in," Nixon said. "I'm extremely happy Coach Rhule gave me this opportunity. I'm going to try to make the most of it.
"I know in the past there really hasn't been a lot of people who look like me in this position, so I don't take that lightly. I'm going to do my best and try to represent others like me and do the best job I can."
Newton added: "I'm here to win. When we win, everyone else gets promotions. When we don't, people get cut along the way."
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