As the New England Patriots concluded their 2020 NFL season with a win over the New York Jets, quarterback Cam Newton still believes he is a starting-caliber quarterback.

In terms of passing numbers, Newton did not have a good year statistically. He ranked 27th in interception rate, 28th in passer rating, and 34th in touchdown passes. Although he had a good day against the Jets, it was not indicative of the entire season.

Even still, Newton said on WEEI on Monday that does not want to be a backup quarterback at his next destination.

“When I look at the whole situation, if you’re asking me, ‘Do I want to be a backup?’ Hell no,” Newton said. “Because when I look at other teams and I’m looking at other players play, there’s been guys that have been getting away with, I feel, murder for years for subpar play. Do I have the right to say that with the year that I had this year? No. But I’m going to be honest and say it, because that’s what I do.

“So if you’re asking me if I’m better than another person, if you give me the name, I probably won’t say it now because I know it’s going to be on some type of blog or whatever. … But at the same time, when you’re asking me, when I’m going throughout this process again and (you’re) saying, ‘OK, would you do this?’ I’m going to say, ‘Do you see that?’ It’s just going to go down like that.”

As he enters a crucial, and potentially career-altering offseason, Newton could take solace in the fact that he played one of his best games as a Patriot on Sunday.