FOXBORO — Any questions about Cam Newton being QB1 in New England took all of two games to be answered. Questions about his future have not been as definitive.

That’s going to be something that will loom heavily over the Patriots all season. In a perfect world, the Pats would sign Newton to a contract extension that would bridge the gap until they find the next face of the franchise.

If New England doesn’t sign him and Newton continues to play well, he’s still going to get paid. That’s when where becomes the question.

Looking at the quarterback landscape around the league, Sunday’s game between Las Vegas and New England might have featured the two teams that could be the answer.

The contract talk won’t stop. Newton will be 32 in May and with his playing style, “long-term” doesn’t seem like an option, unless 3-4 years is your definition of the word.

The two biggest available names for 2021 are going to be Dak Prescott and Trevor Lawrence. Prescott could end up being franchised by Dallas, again, unless Jerry Jones opens the vault. Lawrence should be the No. 1 pick in the draft and seems destined for Jacksonville.

So take those two off the list. As you run up and down the rest of the league, you cross suitors off in bunches.

In the NFC, there aren’t many teams with an opening. Instead, it’s a bunch of curious potential landing spots.

San Francisco has the ability to get out of Jimmy Garoppolo’s contract, but do the 49ers really want to quit on a QB who brought them to a Super Bowl? The idea of Newton to the Bay and Kyle Shanahan is intriguing, especially when you factor in it would pave a clear path for Jimmy G to come right back to his text-buddy Bill Belichick.

Chicago would have to abandon both Mitch Trubisky (easy enough) and Nick Foles, who’s on a short-money, three-year deal. Washington has a promising young QB in Dwayne Haskins, so that doesn’t seem ideal. A longshot could be Tampa, provided Bruce Arians and Tom Brady’s relationship continues to deteriorate. Newton would be a good fit, especially considering how Tampa’s offense works and how he’s significantly better than Winston.

In the AFC, the choices aren’t much better. If Lawrence ends up at Jacksonville, that leaves Indianapolis as a team looking for a starting QB. Cleveland would have to admit Baker Mayfield isn’t the answer and, with reports the Patriots liked Mayfield coming out of Oklahoma, would set up more interesting storylines in New England.

John Elway has made some big moves in Denver, but would he give up on Drew Lock one year after verbally committing to him as the franchise quarterback?

That leaves us with the Patriots and the Raiders.

With Belichick being a fan of talented football players, it seems like getting Newton locked in New England sooner rather than later would be the move.

However, the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported on Sunday about Newton’s contract, saying his understanding was, after talking to sources, that a mid-season adjustment — whether a raise or extension — is unlikely and the team will take a wait-and-see approach.

The Patriots could franchise Newton after the 2020 season, like Dallas did with Prescott earlier this year, but that would cost New England roughly $37.7 million. If Belichick wasn’t giving Brady north of $30 million, it’s hard to comprehend committing that much to Newton.

Belichick understands his bargaining position is good with limited openings out there and fewer looking to spend big money on a 32-year old quarterback who happens to have an injury history.

But everyone knows Jon Gruden and the Raiders don’t really care about things like that.

The fit in Las Vegas is almost too perfect, right down to how Newton would look wearing the Silver and Black. With fans hopefully coming back next season, he’s got a name the franchise can sell and put on billboards up and down the Vegas Strip. That carries a little more weight than the ones on Route 1 or the potential of a vegan restaurant opening in Patriot Place.

Vegas is hurting in cap space for 2021, but it’s nothing the Raiders can’t figure out. It would start with cutting Derek Carr. Gruden’s said a lot of nice things about Carr publicly this season, but there was plenty reported upon his signing as head coach that he wanted no part of the QB. Cutting Carr would clear $19 million and cost only $2.5 million in dead space, a good start to getting the money available to bring Newton in.

If Newton got to a Super Bowl in Carolina with Jonathan Stewart, Greg Olsen and a slew of no-name wideouts, what could he do with Josh Jacobs, Darren Waller and receivers who are the deadly combination of young, talented and fast?

Plenty of things can happen between now, the end of the season and whenever Newton ultimately makes his decision.

But don’t be surprised if, come 2021, he ends up wearing the uniform of one of the two teams that played at Gillette Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

erueb@providencejournal.com

On Twitter: @EricRueb