Did you think the hit Cam Newton took from Trent Murphy was a helmet-to-helmet?

Panthers coach Ron Rivera:

“On the sideline, yes. … I got a chance to see it when it got slowed down. Unfortunately, they are trying to make a decision at full speed. But at the end of the day, we need to keep our composure.”

 

Was your reaction – throwing the ball at Murphy – a product of the hits you’ve taken this season?

Newton:

“I gotta be better than that. That just can’t happen on my part. I just have to let the referees do their job, and I thought it was a question hit, but yeah, I can’t throw a ball at a person. I know that’s against the rules.”

 

But did the referees do their job correctly?

Newton:

“Next question.”

 

What was your reasoning for not issuing a helmet-to-helmet hit?

Referee Walt Coleman:

“What I saw was that Cam slid late and the defender went over the top. I didn’t see any forcible contact to the head.”

 

Newton:

“In a position like that, everyone saw I was coming to the sideline and I was sliding. I am not going to beat a dead horse, so I just can’t retaliate in that way. I am better than that. I can’t jeopardize that type of play for my team.”

 

Panthers fullback Mike Tolbert:

“I saw it, and I thought it should have been called, but we didn’t get the call. (Newton) felt a certain way and he threw the ball. I would’ve done the same thing.”

 

Did Newton’s history with no-calls this year contribute to his reaction?

Rivera:

“Without a doubt. He felt it. And that’s the thing – when I went over to talk to him really quick, he said, ‘Coach, he hit me.’ I said. ‘OK, that’s all I needed to know.’”

 

Newton said after a Week 8 game that your crew officiated that he didn’t “feel safe.” When he makes a comment like that, do you have any conversations about how you’re going to officiate the game?

Coleman:

“We just work the game, and if it’s a foul, we call it a foul. If it’s not, then we don’t. We just officiate the game and do the best of our ability. So, you, know, it doesn’t many any difference to us who is playing or who the quarterback is. We’re trying to get the plays correct.”