FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Cam Newton and Julian Edelman are in the early stages of developing a connection with the New England Patriots, which is reflected when they’ve moved to a side field to work together in recent training camp practices.

Edelman took a humorous step in showing how they are coming together Tuesday, tweeting a picture of them as Superman (Newton) and Batman (Edelman).

“The night is darkest just before the dawn. And I promise you, the dawn is coming…” pic.twitter.com/LbsSkqoGok

— Julian Edelman (@Edelman11) August 25, 2020

“We’re still trying to get to know each other. Just like I am with all my new teammates, but specifically with a guy that distributes the football, just kind of getting to know each other as people on the field, off the field. Trying to build a rapport,” Edelman said this week, adding that he’s done the same thing with quarterbacks Brian Hoyer and Jarrett Stidham, so he now has “to catch up with Cam.”

Newton’s approach has energized Edelman, who previously referred to his “charming personality” while noting how his work ethic and confidence generates “a vibe that can feel you and get you in a mindset.” It’s an approach that also has Newton in the driver’s seat to become the Patriots’ top quarterback, replacing Tom Brady — one of Edelman’s closest friends.

After splitting repetitions evenly with veteran Hoyer and Stidham through the first four practices of training camp, Newton has been thrust into a leading role in each of the past four workouts.

The turning point came when Stidham visited a Boston hospital for tests on his leg last Thursday. While the tests came back negative, Stidham’s workload has been notably reduced since that point.

It’s really happening.

Lionel Messi told Barcelona officials Tuesday he intends to terminate his contract and leave the club this summer, sources told Sam Marsden and Moises Llorens of ESPN.

Messi informed the club of his decision via fax, according to Sid Lowe of The Guardian.

The 33-year-old icon has a contract until 2021, but he’s grown increasingly frustrated by the worsening state of affairs at the Camp Nou. Barca’s humiliating 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the Champions League quarterfinals capped the side’s first season without a trophy since 2007-08, and it appears to have been the final straw in convincing the Argentine it’s time to move on from the club he joined as a teenager in 2001.

Messi’s contract reportedly contains a clause that allows him to unilaterally terminate his deal with the Catalan side at the end of the season. Barcelona, however, insist the clause expired in June, according to Fabrizio Romano of The Guardian.

Various reports in Spain suggest Messi believes the clause is valid through the end of August because the 2019-20 campaign was prolonged due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Barcelona officials will meet in the coming days to discuss the matter, Romano reports, but the club remains adamant Messi will only leave if an interested team satisfies his mammoth €700-million release clause.

The Spanish giants have publicly maintained that the decorated forward will continue to be the pillar of the team under Ronald Koeman since the Dutchman replaced Quique Setien as manager earlier in August. But reports indicate various board members have privately entertained the idea of selling the generational talent in the hopes of reinvesting and rebuilding an aging squad.

It was reported earlier in August that Messi told Koeman he had doubts about his future when the two met to discuss plans for the upcoming season.

It remains to be seen how many clubs could actually afford to sign the six-time Ballon d’Or winner if they need to pay a transfer fee. Manchester City are reportedly “crunching the numbers” to see if a deal is financially viable, while rumblings of Inter Milan’s interest persist.

But if Messi does indeed terminate his contract and becomes a free agent, countless other teams will instantly thrust themselves into competition for his services.

Messi, who has been involved in public disputes with the Barca brass in recent months, seems acutely aware he’s running out of time to add to his four Champions League titles, especially with Barcelona on the verge of a significant rebuild.

CINCINNATI — Bengals defensive end Carlos Dunlap said he and other Black NFL players were discriminated against because of their race during an offseason workout.

On Monday, Dunlap recalled an instance in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he and a group of Black players were asked by a park ranger to cease the workout and leave while a group of white NFL players were allowed to continue their drills.

“It was appalling to us and it was very frustrating and it was something that almost made me act out of character,” Dunlap told reporters on Monday.

Dunlap said the incident occurred in late June, one month after George Floyd, who is Black, was killed in Minneapolis in late May when a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than 7 minutes.

According to Dunlap, the two groups of NFL players were separated by two fields. A group of young soccer players, which was comprised of mixed ethnicities, was asked to stop. Dunlap said the Black players were “asked to get off the field aggressively as well.” The park ranger, according to Dunlap, allowed the white group to finish its workout.

“We asked them, why did you demand that we leave the field and go to another field when we explained that we were almost done, literally five to 10 minutes, versus the other group that was able to finish the workout,” Dunlap said. “And he pretty much watched and damn-near cheered them on.”

The Fort Lauderdale parks and recreation department, which oversees the park rangers, could not be immediately reached for comment.