Cam Newton Digs A Bigger Hole
I hate it when you tell yourself to not do something so much out of worry that you end up doing it by accident.
Alright, it’s time for one more lengthy thinkpiece about Cam Newton because the internet doesn’t have enough of those. Brace yourselves, it’s preachy Dave time. Everyone’s got thoughts about Cam Newton, so I might as well get mine out now.
I’ve been a big defender of Cam his whole pro career. I hated him in college. I thought he’d bust out hard, but he won me over pretty quick by actually being awesome and by actually seeming to be a pretty good person overall. He definitely doesn’t deserve to be judged as a bad person because he stole a laptop at Florida. We all did stupid shit in college and he was justly punished for it. At least he didn’t probably rape anyone like a certain other #1 pick. This season Cam fever hit peak hype, and this was pretty much the season of Cam. Because of his play but more because of his personality, Cam has quickly become the most controversial figure in the sport. You either love him to death and defend everything he does or you hate him so much you’ll write letters to the editor because he danced after scoring a TD. I, and probably most other young fans, have been the former. I think if you are over 40 you are contractually obligated to be the latter. There is no middle ground with Cam. He’s either the coolest dude ever or a disgusting repulsive selfish man-baby. Pretty much how the internet just works now. Pick a side, everyone on the other side is evil and stupid and wrong.
After a season of white knighting him, even to family members at thankgiving (a fight I should have known was pointless), these past few days have made me sit back a bit, because frankly I don’t particularly like how he walked out, even if I understand why he did. I think it was immature of him to walk out, no matter how bad he must have felt. If other players can deal with it, so can he. Just because he wears his emotions on his sleeve doesn’t mean we should just absolve him of anything immature he does just because we can empathize with his situation.
The fact is, like with most internet argument topics, the correct answer is probably somewhere in the middle. Cam is a passionate person. He seems like a quality guy. He gives back to children. He does a ton for the community. He’s by all accounts a great teammate and he was gracious and humble on the field after the game, just to the Broncos instead of the media. He’s extremely talented, deserves his success, and the fact that he dances when he scores should be celebrated because the NFL could use more fun instead of making everyone a stupid robot. But you know what? I think he is also kind of arrogant. I think he does have a rather large ego. I think he is a little immature. But I don’t let this define my opinion on Cam. I don’t mind that he’s arrogant or a little immature, because he’s fun to watch. Honestly, I think the people who hate him actually want him around just as much as I do. Having someone to hate is just as vital to the sport as having someone to love. I’ve touched on this before with Dez Bryant. I’ll admit, I enjoyed watching RG3 falter because I couldn’t stand his personality and arrogance in the same way many people can’t stand Cam’s. But looking at RG3 objectively, he’s probably not a bad dude.
So I’m kind of done with Cam Newton arguments. I think the people who hate him simply value different things in their football players. Things I don’t agree should be as highly valued, but it’s just a difference in preference. The people who don’t like Cam aren’t evil and stupid or racist. I think some of the hate he gets is a little racially motivated, but it’s probably not nearly as much as some would have us believe. I genuinely think most of the people who hate him just don’t want their QBs to act like that. I think caring how an entertainer acts is kind of silly, but to each his own. If you hate Cam Newton, I strongly disagree with you, but from now on I’m going to try and respectfully disagree instead of calling you an idiot.
I still love him. I still think he is an incredible player to watch, and I think a lot of the utter hate he gets for enjoying the sport is ridiculous. But I think he’s also kind of arrogant and could stand to use a little humbling like this game should provide.
Now, onto something more relevant: his day after press conferences. I think he handled himself quite well actually, and he brought up some great points in his own defense. I think his sore loser comment is getting completely taken out of context in many cases. He “admitted” to being a sore loser but only in the context of a bigger point that no one likes to lose. A point I strongly agree with. Some people just show it differently.
The more interesting comment he made was probably the worst thing he could have said to squelch his detractors who find him selfish. When asked why he didn’t seem to go for the ball on the critical fumble late in the 4th that effectively cost Carolina their last good chance to win the game, he claimed it was because he didn’t want to get injured. That was probably the worst answer he could have possibly given if he wanted to quiet people who think he’s too “me-first”. Anything would have been better than that, like “I tried to anticipate the bounce and messed up” or “I’m honestly not sure, it happened so fast”. As expected, this answer has justified to many people that he is indeed selfish and full of himself. Especially since he had a teammate playing with a literal broken arm and he wouldn’t risk a possible injury trying to get a football.
But I think everyone is looking at that comment from the wrong perspective. I think that comment is incredibly interesting, especially if it is his honest answer, because I think it goes to show you not that he’s selfish, but how badly the Broncos had broken him by that point. before we call Cam a selfish pussy for not jumping on a ball for risk of injury, I’d like to remind everyone he is no stranger to contact. He’s not as reckless as RG3 or Vick, but he’s not shy about getting hit. I’d also like to remind everyone that he literally played a 4th of last season with a broken back after a car wreck. He led the Panthers to the playoffs with cracked vertebrae. He could have sat out the rest of the year and I doubt people would have blamed him for it. But he didn’t. Cam Newton is tough and anyone who thinks otherwise is…well I respectfully disagree with them is what I’m saying. But if that guy, who once played with a broken back, was too afraid to jump on a critical late game fumble to save his last chance at a Super Bowl win because he was suddenly worried for his health? The Broncos did more damage to Cam’s psyche that game then any of us could have predicted. The Broncos broke him. They shattered his confidence so badly that a usually fearless leader had essentially given up when he was still only down by 6 points in his biggest game.
Okay now that’s enough about Cam let’s get into the offseason.
The last part was something I was talking about with my Mrs. And I think that’s the worst feeling Cam had– Superman felt fear. How freakishly alien that had to be.
Denver’s front seven is merciless. Miller played like he wanted everyone to collectively stop talking about J.J. freaking Watt, and instead recognize him as an unstoppable force of nature. Wolfe, Ware, and Jackson fed on that like sharks smelling blood. And after the high– oh, MAN they had to have been on an emotional high– of stopping the Cardinals like they were NOTHING, to get just completely beat…
When I watch football, I watch the lineplay. I have for about 15 years now. I love defense– not the smash-mouth kind of “HURT THEM!” but the kind that utilizes angles, leverage, intelligence. Von Miller had the most beautiful, athletically stunning play I have ever seen– Barry Sanders never made a cut as sharp as Miller’s cut-spin. He was demanding three people. Ealy had a comparable stat line, and was a force to be reckoned with, but Miller was a whole plane higher. Yeah, I’m a Broncos fan. But Miller played lights-out ball for 12 quarters this post season, to a level that is Montanaesque– y’know, the guy who was great-but-someone-was-always-better in the regular season, but then in the post season, that something clicked.
It’s hard to talk about defense. Their stat-lines aren’t as sexy– 1300 yards, 50 touchdowns, 350 points, those are things people get. Big numbers, impressive. Defense is mostly about small numbers– except for sacks and maybe turnovers. Defense is the obstacle, and people like seeing triumph of the protagonist more than the antagonist. I’m kind of sad about Cam’s situation, because it’s detracting from what may have been the most dominating Super Bowl defensive effort ever.
I’m not saying the unit’s better than the ’85 Bears, or the 2000 Ravens or 2002 Bucs. But I *AM* saying that Denver’s defense was against a better offense than *ANY* of those teams, by a mile, and did something incredible– something that the Bears didn’t seem to do, the Ravens couldn’t do, and even the Bucs didn’t do. They didn’t just beat up the enemy QB. They broke his *will*. They made him tap out and worry about next year more than the next 5 minutes. It’s not just the hits, or the sacks– it was the realization that, at that moment, in that instant, their will was greater than his.
And that’s remarkable, in part because of how big a part of the Panthers Cam has been– how giving he’s been, and how enthusiastic, and self-assured, even cocky. How arrogant he was. He didn’t just lose to the Broncos: he lost to himself.
I’m not saying all of that to RAH RAH SIS BOOM BAH Denver, or to drag Cam down. I say that in deepest empathy. The most painful experience a person can have in their life is to truly, honestly, and without self-deception evaluate oneself and find oneself lacking in ways you thought you were strong. It can break a person. Or, it can forge a fire, and kindle a need to overcome those deficiencies.
I don’t know how Cam will handle it. But I think he’s either going to be a shell of what he was– seeing shadows everywhere– if he lets that new awareness dominate him, or he’s going to harness that knowledge into a weapon, and become a force in the NFL more dominant and thrilling than he was this year.
For the sake of Cam, and for the sake of the NFL, I hope it’s the latter, because as fun as Cam was this year… a Cam who goes out, and has something to prove *TO HIMSELF*, is going to be a reckoning the NFL’s never known, and I want to watch that unfold.+
I think now that he lost the big one, he is going to be hungry for the one thing that he faltered on. The loss is going to make him better, like jamies in college. I see them getting back to the playoffs in low-mild difficulty because of the division and lets face it, they are going to get at least one quality wr in free agency, so as long as the panthers can handle a jordy Nelson packer team, they should get back in 5 years.
They do have Kelvin Benjamin returning, so that’s nice.
Pretty much. TDP is the only place I know that I can actually just chill and talk about football reasonably. Thank you Dave. You are a godsend
I’m not a cam hater by any means. The man is fun and really good at the game. The only bad things I said about him this week were that he isn’t a smart player and can’t handle blitzes but he’s still a damn good one. But the fact that he dove away from the fumble just bugs me. You bring up Thomas Davis and all that and that’s how everybody else felt about the super bowl, but cam wasn’t thinking the super bowl was his top priority I guess, he was acting weird all game.
Broncos fan here,
Yeah I’m slightly biased, but if this isn’t a classic case of “You run your mouth, you get what’s coming to you” then I don’t know what is. The Panthers danced and dabbed all season, celebrating like they were unbeatable, and telling teams and players who didn’t like it to “Keep them out of the endzone”.
The Denver defense did just that, and Cam couldn’t handle it. It seemed like he didn’t enjoy overhearing Aqib Talib talking to the media, which was ironic as well…….. if you don’t like him gloating, score more TD’s on him next time. It was almost as satisfying watching Newton sit there and pout as it was to see my Broncos win the big game.
Can’t wait for the rematch game next year in Mile High. Hopefully by then Cam and other Carolina players mature a bit and develop a mindset of keeping their mouths shut until they’ve actually beaten the best of the best.
I think you’re missing the point of why Cam is so polarizing. The whole team danced and dabbed because they were HAVING FUN, not because they wanted to rub their accomplishments in their opponents face. This is a young fun team and that rubs people the wrong way. Just because Manning and the Broncos took everything seriously every week and the Panthers didn’t seem to doesn’t mean they’re cocky and running their mouths. People just don’t like it when another team is having fun AND winning.
I’m glad they had fun during the regular season then, because it didn’t look like they particularly enjoyed their second loss of the year. Cocky or not, I’d like to think that losing the super bowl knocked them back down to Earth.
They are talented though, but I doubt they will have another cakewalk to the championship next year. My main point was how funny I think it is that Cam can “HAVE FUN” while he’s winning yet immediately pouts and sulks after losing like he never expected that it could happen. It’s difficult to have any sympathy for an attitude like that, despite the fact that I wasn’t routing for them anyway.
Denver won and are now having fun I’m sure….. Hope people are as okay with that as they were with Carolina doing it all year up until last Sunday.
This comment infuriates me more than it probably should. Why is it Broncos fans want to ridicule Cam Newton and ignore the fact that that Talib played dirty enough to be associated with the Taliban on more than just his name (I was on reddit during the game… trust me it happened). “Cam dances, he had it coming to him!” doesn’t seem nearly as logical of an argument as, “Why is the jackass that just tried to rupture a fellow player’s spinal cord still allowed to play?”
Why can’t Cam be a team player by saving himself from injury? Let’s say he jumps in on that ball and gets a concussion with 6mins left in the game. Panthers have the ball still, but does anyone think Derek Anderson is gonna step in a win the superbowl? Maybe he doesn’t want to get hurt because he knows there’s 0 chance they win if he’s out.
Why is Cam smiling…
If it was Peyton Manning in that situation, it’s all good.
Peyton wouldn’t and didn’t act like that. He lost 2 Super Bowls (one of them being a huge embarrassing 43-8 beat down) and he still faced the music without being surly.
Except the part where he walked out without shaking Drew Brees’ hand. But yeah, he totally wasn’t a sore loser ever.
Remember Draw Play #437? Cam’s post game interview and his post-post game interview illustrates why so many people don’t like him. No he’s not a thug but he’s not the best Cam he can be either. Strength of character is a valuable trait and humility is a measurement of character. He doesn’t have it yet and as long as his pride keeps him from learning that lesson he’ll continue to struggle. I hope he does get it though. I hope he grows and matures because to so many little eyes he is a role model.
Being a gracious loser doesn’t mean being content with losing. Look up synonyms for “gracious” and you’ll find “accommodating, big-hearted, chivalrous, courteous, gallant, good-natured, sociable. Adversely the antonyms are disrespectful, indifferent, rude, and surly. What Cam doesn’t understand is that there is still a way to be a champion in spirit even after defeat–and that is far better then being a flat out loser.
Cam clearly needs to start playing Dwarf Fortress.
Losing Is Fun.
At the base of it, if cam were my son I’d be slightly disappointed in him from the post game interview. More so at his one word answers than walking out when some one says ” I know your disappointed in yourself and your teammates….” and then trails off(where’s the question in that? What the hell is he supposed to say to that to be gracious?) But he isn’t, so why should I care what any of them have to say? Being forced to do those interviews is horse shit, and the only thing that ever comes out of it is canned answers and overly sanctimonious journalists throwing tissy fits when a player refuses to worship at their alter. The only post game presser that any body learns anything from is when a player has something they WANT to say, so why not just make it available to players but not require it? Didn’t everyone out side of J-school get sick of these stories when Lynch did his thing?
I’m tired of the “Cam having fun” argument. I want him to have fun. The problem is, I want EVERYONE to have fun. I’m sick and tired of the no fun league’s anti-celebration bullshit. I want to go back to the days of sharpies in socks and cell phones in goal posts. The narrative that the only emotions in football are humble sadness and staid enjoyment of a job well done is so fucking boring.
So Cam was lying all along?
Man… What a RIPOFF!!!