Panthers' Rivera: Newton will 'without a doubt' be ready for season opener

With Cam Newton's shoulder surgery set for Thursday, Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera allayed any remaining fears the former NFL MVP is in danger of missing the start of the 2017 season, expressing his confidence that he'll suit up for the majority of the offseason program.

"Without a doubt," Rivera said, according to Jeremy Bergman of NFL.com. "There is no concern, at least in talking with the trainers and doctors. I'm very confident that things are going to go along very well. They have a timeframe that they've mapped out for the most part. He'll be working with the trainers and he'll be working with us for the most part during the OTAs and minicamps."

The Panthers said Newton is expected back by training camp when his surgery to repair a partially torn rotator cuff suffered late last season was announced, but with the team saying the quarterback wouldn't require a procedure at the combine, there was some concern his injury might be worse than originally thought.

Rivera attempted to explain why the decision on Newton's surgery changed within one month.

"Well, I think what happened is the doctor is looking at the MRI and their decision (was) to see if it would heal on its own," Rivera explained. "You don't really want to go in on a quarterback and do the surgery, at least that's what I think the understanding was. He had been having such a good offseason, and then it just kind of plateaued I guess.

"There was a little bit of thought that 'You know what, now's a good time if any if we're going to do it,' so that's what they decided. It's not like it's a major surgery thing that has to be done from my understanding. It should be one of those things that should really be done and it should heal up quickly."