After three seasons at Louisiana-Monroe, Newton transferred to TCU in time for the 2022 season. All he did for the Horned Frogs over the next two season was to make All-Big-12 twice, so the jump to a higher level was no issue whatsoever. Perhaps he dropped in the draft as a smaller cornerback who didn’t test well at the combine, but defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo knew exactly what his team was getting with the 149th overall pick in the fifth round.
“He was real good. [Secondary/cornerbacks coach Charles] Burks did a great job with him communicating. I sat in on a Zoom, and again, he can really talk the game. Smart football guy, good football awareness. As I mentioned, that kind of comes through when you talk to the guy. He’s just an overall good human being, which is always good to add.”
If Uncle Lou likes him, we’re in. Not that we already weren’t. The 5′ 10⅝”, 190-pound Newton can play inside and outside (which is how the Bengals envision his deployment), and last season, he allowed 25 catches on 52 targets for 303 yards, 120 yards after the catch, one touchdown, one interception, six pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 64.8.
