Cam Newton Silencing the Critics
As I tuned in on Sunday afternoon and watched the quarterback that broke onto the scene a year ago at Auburn (yes, people knew Cam Newton pre-Auburn but, no one knew he was going to have one of the most impressive seasons in college football history), I sat in awe. The Panthers have had some high draft picks that were extremely hyped.
- Panthers 1st #1 overall pick
They’ve had the likes of Kerry Collins (their expansion year and yes somehow he is still playing), Julius Peppers (arguably the most talented Panther of all time), Tim Biakabatuka (He went ahead of Eddie George but, my Wolverine alum was never able to shake off injuries), Ray Carruth (He played a couple of seasons before going to his current location, jail). The point is no Panther’s debut has been more anticipated than Cam Newton’s. No one knew what to expect but, I guess Cam Newton had it all figured out. Last year, I sat through Panthers games that were more brutal than the most gruesome scenes in Saw. I felt like I knew kids in high school that could have looked better than Jimmy Clausen did his rookie year. Cam Newton looked like he had been in the NFL for years and everyone just watched him in amazement. Steve Smith showed us that he hadn’t lost a step; it was just 3 years since he had a capable quarterback. He had some refreshing comments about Cam, when asked if he was encouraged by Newton’s performance. He said that would be selling him short and he wasn’t going to sell him short.
- Steve Smith may finally have a QB to smile about
Cam Newton broke the record for most passing yards in a rookie debut ever, 422. He also added two passing touchdowns and one rushing where he used his athleticism by jumping over the pile. He had his boneheaded interception but, after watching Jake Delhomme for 8 years I’ll take one of those over five every week. Killa Cam, as I like to refer to him, did not have much of a running game to back him. He saw 6 and 7 man blitzes all game but, did not seem to flinch once. The game finished with the Panthers coming up a yard short on a 4th and 5 but, afterwards I felt a level of happiness that I hadn’t felt about the Panthers in years. Cam Newton did not take it that well and that really shows you the competitor he is. I didn’t expect 300 yards from Cam but, he’s been defying odds for a while now. Is he going to be the best quarterback in Panthers history? He won’t have too much competition, so I hope so. I am also a Michigan Wolverines fan and I have not been this happy after a weekend of football in a long time. I was skeptical of Cam coming out of college because he ran the spread and did not always beat teams with his arm.
- Cam exceeded everyone's expectations Sunday
I guess I should have trusted the guy who hadn’t lost a football game in almost 2 years. I’m not going to say Cam Newton is going to replace Peyton Manning as the NFL’s elite but, on the first week of football without the legend that started every game since his rookie year in 1998. We might have just seen another legend in the making.
