According to Panthers.com writer Max Henson, Cam Newton is now expected to miss OTA workouts due to surgery on a partially torn rotator cuff.

News of Newton's shoulder injury isn't new, but the exact inury and the seriousness of it was something some seemed to shrug off, while Newton's on-field expressions said otherwise. Panthers athletic trainer Ryan Vermillion commented on the matter.

“It is well-documented and well-researched that overhead throwing athletes commonly have wear and tear to their rotator cuffs,” said Vermillion. “As a result of the MRI, we modified all of Cam’s work in the weight room and on the field for the final three weeks of the season.”

Newton is expected to start range of motion and rotator cuff exercises following the surgery to build up his conditioning for throwing.

 “The positive thing, unlike when he had ankle surgery, is that he will still be able to work on his conditioning, work on his core, work on the rest of his body," said Vermillion.

Defensive end and veteran Charles Johnson is having surgery due to a back injury that will sideline him after he reported having back pains to the coaching staff. 

“We began a normal course of action and treatment. He saw Dr. Connor, we did an MRI, and Charles received an epidural injection,” Vermillion said. “Unfortunately, he didn’t get much relief from the injection and progressively worsened over the next few days. He saw Dr. Bruce Darden at OrthoCarolina, and we felt the best course of action was for Charles to undergo a microdiscectomy.

Damiere Byrd also will be having surgery on his knee. His injury, unlike Newton's, happened doing some drills on his own time, per Ryan Vermillion. He also stated that Byrd would have his knee scoped by Dr. Connor of Carolina's Medical Centers and his off season conditioning will be worked around as such.

Byrd is expected to compete for the slot role that the Panthers are looking to improve at. This could put him a step back while trying to get to full health.

Written By Tripp Morgan

Follow @TrippMorgan6 and @Cat_Chronicles for the latest news and updates around the Carolina Panthers.

Article photo by Jesse Fraetis.