The 2026 college football season is weeks away. Former Carolina Panthers quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton released his top five college football quarterbacks ahead of the season, and not only was Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin out of the top three, but he was also ranked below a quarterback from the ACC.

“Number four, nobody’s talking about CJ Bailey at North Carolina State. CJ Bailey was Jeremiah Smith’s high school quarterback,” Newton said to Omari Collins on a July 23 video on his 4th & 1 With Cam Newton YouTube channel. “That was a really good high school football team.”

Immediately, his on-air co-host Omari Collins, popularly known as Peggy, quipped, questioning why an ACC quarterback would be ranked so highly. For the record, Bailey plays for the NC State Wolfpack, a team that is ranked 66th nationally in strength of schedule for the 2026 college football season, per ESPN’s College Football Power Index. Of Newton’s top five, Dante Moore’s Oregon Ducks are the closest to Bailey’s Wolfpack, and the Ducks are ranked No. 20 nationally.

Bailey’s ability is undeniable. He finished the 2025 season with 3,105 passing yards, 25 touchdowns, and a 68.8% pass completion rate. While this is good enough, the quality of his opponents makes him undeserving of such a high ranking. In Joel Klatt’s list of college football’s top 10 quarterbacks, Bailey was nowhere to be found, which makes his No. 4 finish on Newton’s list very controversial. Regardless, Newton defended his claims.

“Well, you had guys that played at D2 schools still go: Trey Lance, Carson Wentz… Don’t nobody say nothing about that? Don’t nobody say Josh Allen went to Wyoming? What CJ Bailey has been able to produce versus other quarterbacks is impressive,” Newton added.

Rating a quarterback based on previous quarterbacks who thrived in a similar condition may not be a solid foundation for Newton, but he has chosen to pitch his tent here. The next quarterback, just behind Bailey, made it even more questionable. It would have been better to have him out of the list than to have him ranked behind an ACC quarterback with fewer statistical outputs in the previous season.

“And number five, I’ve got Julian Sayin. But bro, when you’re throwing it to the Carnell Tates and the Jeremiah Smiths, Peggy, you can doggone go out there and look like you are all the world too,” Newton added.

Again, Peggy found fault with him talking down on Sayin’s efforts because of the caliber of stars he is surrounded by. But again, Newton brought an historical perspective to this.

“The person that pops up in my brain, Matt Leinart. Matt Leinart was at USC. He had Lendale White, Reggie Bush, Dwayne Jarrett, Mike Williams—I mean, he had a slew of stars. When he got to the league…”

Perhaps Newton has a point with Sayin being elevated by his star-studded team. However, predicting his future not based on his previous performance but on the outcome of another QB in a similar situation may not be very accurate. Notably, Sayin was ranked third on Joel Klatt’s list.

Newton’s response to the ESPN layoff

Newton was among those affected by ESPN’s recent layoffs on Tuesday. Last year, he signed a multi-year deal with the company and worked as a recurring analyst on ESPN’s “First Take” alongside Stephen A. Smith during the NFL season.

“Working alongside some of the most talented journalists and sports individuals that cover sports was something that got me to realize I have a newfound respect for the skill,” Newton said. “You can’t make me hate ESPN. What I’ve learned, it was an internship. I am a former athlete that did not study journalism, so now when you see how production actually works, you’ll be a fool not to take your notes.”

The company’s decision came after acquiring NFL Network. Tom Pelissero, Ryan Clark, and Karl Ravech were also among those fired.