NFL legend Cam Newton admits he’s not ‘superman,’ can’t provide for his 8 kids like he used to. Here’s his 1 big mistake

Moneywise

Wed, January 14, 2026 at 1:23 PM EST

7 min read

In this article:

Cam Newton clasps both hands together as if in prayer. — Grant Halverson / Getty Images

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Cam Newton, once one of the NFL’s most electrifying quarterbacks, is now tackling an off-field challenge: income loss.

At 36, Newton’s days as a professional athlete are behind him. He officially stepped away from the game in 2021, after his one-year, $6 million contract with the Carolina Panthers expired. Now, the former football star is candid about the financial reality of life after fame.

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“Being in the NFL, everyone knows there's a large sum of money that comes to you in a short span of time, and being away from the game for three years, those checks don't come in the same,” he said in an episode of the FOX reality TV show, Special Forces (1).

Newton admitted that the sudden drop in earnings has made it difficult for him to feel like “Superman” to his eight children.

“It hurts me knowing that I can’t provide like I once did,” the former quarterback wrote on Instagram (2).

Aside from this income drop, Newton pointed to lifestyle creep as a major culprit for both his financial struggles and those of other pro athletes in a video posted on YouTube (3).

But in a dynamic, volatile economy, it’s certainly not just entrepreneurs and professional athletes facing sudden income fluctuations — ordinary workers are struggling too.

An unpredictable job market

The U.S. unemployment rate is worsening, with 2025 posting the weakest annual job growth rate since 2003 (4).

While the Federal Reserve cut interest rates repeatedly in 2025 to try to support the market, these efforts weren’t quite enough to course-correct the American unemployment rate. Many factors are to blame here.

On the labor market side, the workforce is aging and shrinking due to reduced immigration (5).

Meanwhile, employers face ongoing economic uncertainty due to tariffs and rising input costs — making it more challenging to hire more workers. Approximately one-fifth of companies said they were reducing hiring because of tariffs, according to a survey by the Federal Reserve Banks of Atlanta and Richmond, alongside Duke University (6).

There have also been widespread layoffs of civil servants, as the U.S. federal workforce dropped to its lowest levels in at least a decade (7).

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According to the Wall Street Journal, “job hunts [are] more desperate, as workers cobble together part-time gigs, raid 401(k)s and get waitlisted by DoorDash (8).

Like Newton, many now face hard choices and uncomfortable lifestyle adjustments.

If you’re facing or preparing for a sudden dip in income, here are three ways could bolster your finances.

Read More: Approaching retirement with no savings? Don’t panic, you're not alone. Here are 6 easy ways you can catch up (and fast)

1. Minimize debt

Americans’ total credit card debt was $1.23 trillion as of the third quarter of 2025, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York (9). That’s the highest ever balance since the New York Fed began tracking this figure in 1999.

Professional athletes aren’t immune to taking on significant debt, either. Anthony Brown, the former Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver, reportedly filed for bankruptcy after owing nearly $3 million to eight creditors back in 2024 (10).

Most households should examine their credit card debt when income drops, as these liabilities can quickly become unsustainable. Credit card debt is notorious for having exorbitantly high interest rates. For example, the average rate on credit cards was 19.65% as of the start of 2026, according to Bankrate (11).

The big two methods for paying debt down are the avalanche and snowball techniques.

The avalanche method focuses on paying down your highest-interest debts first. This can create a cascading effect where, after the big debt is paid, you knock off the smaller ones quickly.

Meanwhile, the snowball method starts with paying down your smaller debts one after another to build up steam. Then, once you're down to one debt, you put all your resources into paying it off. From here, most financial experts recommend building out an emergency fund, then getting to investing as soon as possible. But becoming debt-free is the first, and arguably most important, step.

2. Maximize emergency savings

After tackling your debt, the next step is to focus on expenses.

If your income changes, activities that were once normal to you — such as vacations, eating out and shopping sprees — may no longer be affordable. Here, Dave Ramsey’s famous “beans and rice” approach can help to pay off debt rapidly and start accumulating savings. Temporarily scaling back to a bare-bones beans and rice budget can give you space to develop the emergency funds you need.

Find a solid spot for your savings

As a rule of thumb, many experts recommend at least three to six months’ worth of expenses in an emergency fund. If you’re among the 81% of U.S. workers who worried they would lose their jobs in 2025, you were far from alone (13).

But planning ahead can help you avert financial strain, should the worst case scenario come true.

To get started, a high-yield account, such as a Wealthfront Cash Account, can be a great place to grow your emergency funds, offering both competitive interest rates and liquid access to your cash when you need it.

A Wealthfront Cash Account can provide a base variable APY of 3.25%, but new clients can get a 0.65% boost over their first three months for a total APY of 3.90% provided by program banks on your uninvested cash. That’s ten times the national deposit savings rate, according to the FDIC’s December report.

With no minimum balances or account fees, as well as 24/7 withdrawals and free domestic wire transfers, your funds can remain accessible at all times. Plus, Wealthfront Cash Account balances of up to $8 million are insured by the FDIC through program banks.

You can also check out Moneywise’s best high-yield savings accounts list of 2026 to find options that offer up to 4.05% APY.

3. Stay consistent with investing

Whether you’re an athlete, entrepreneur or employee, it pays to set aside a little money each month for investing. Passive income from saving regularly can help you stay afloat if your career takes an unexpected turn.

You don’t need to invest millions of dollars in order to boost your wealth, either. Investing a small portion of your paycheck each month can make a huge difference, thanks to compound interest.

For instance, investing $50 each week for 20 years amounts to $123,821, assuming it compounds at 8%. The next step is choosing where to invest. One popular option is the the S&P 500, which, over the past 20 years, has delivered an average annualized return of 11.1% (14).

Squirrel away your spare change

You can start your journey by investing your spare change from everyday purchases with Acorns.

Acorns rounds up your everyday spending to the nearest dollar and invests the rest in low-cost diversified ETFs. So, your $4.25 morning coffee becomes a 75-cent investment in your future.

If you want to take it one step further, you can invest a larger proportion of your paycheck in a low-cost S&P 500 ETF with Acorns.

The best part? You can get a $20 bonus investment when you sign up with a recurring deposit.

NFL legend Cam Newton admits he’s not ‘superman,’ can’t provide for his 8 kids like he used to. Here’s his 1 big mistake