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Maybe Cam Newton‘s been resting his arm, or something.

And maybe it’s helping.

Panthers coach Ron Rivera said this morning at the coaches breakfast that every indication he’s gotten from his quarterback’s recovery from shoulder surgery has been positive.

“I look forward to seeing him soon, but just very happy that things are trending in the right direction,” Rivera said.

Newton had an arthroscopic procedure on his throwing shoulder in January, after it became clear he couldn’t throw the ball downfield at all last season, with the team finally parking him for the last three games.

After the procedure, the team’s doctor told Newton the cartilage damage in his shoulder “was not as extensive as it appeared,” which by definition isn’t the same as saying he’s healthy, because there is some cartilage damage in there. But they’re confident he’ll be ready by training camp, and past the problems that limited him last season (when a 6-2 start became a seven-game losing streak as Newton’s shoulder unraveled).