How do you reflect on the Super Bowl?

I ain't got no more tears to cry. Obviously I had a lot of time to think about it and I've seen so much blown out of proportion, but at the end of the day, when you invest so much time and you sacrifice so much and things don't go as planned, I think emotions take over. I think that's what happens.

As far as trying to be like this person, trying to be like that person, I heard numerous quotes about, 'What if this person was in that situation, how would he have handled it? Would we have seen this person do that? How he would have handled that.' The truth of the matter is, I'm not trying to be this person, nor am I trying to be that person.

I've said it since Day 1: I am who I am, I know what I'm capable of and I know where I'm going. I don't have to conform to anybody else's wants for me to do. I'm not that guy.

If you want me to be this type of person, I'm not that. And I'm happy to say that. This league is a great league with or without me, I understand that. I am my own person. I take pride in that, and that's pretty much how I feel.

 

Do you have any regrets on how you handled the post-game interview?

I really don't. It happened. I didn't want to talk to the media at the time and the truth of the matter is, I really still don't want to you. But at the end of the day, things have to happen.

I had a lot of time to go back and play everything back and I've got to say, I'm human. I never once said I was perfect, I never proclaimed I was perfect, but at the end of the day, people pick and they do things of that sort and the truth of the matter is, who are you to say your way is right?

That's what I don't understand. You've got all these people who are condemning and saying, 'Oh, man, you shouldn't do this.' But what makes your way right? I mean, I've been on record to say I'm a sore loser. Who likes to lose? You show me a good loser and I'm going to show you a loser.

It's not a popularity contest. I'm here to win football games - for this organization, for Mr. Richardson, for my teammates, and for what it's worth, my fans. They know what's real, and I leave everything else out on the field, I prepare the right way, I have a mentality and a standard I set for myself, and I'm not going to bend nor break.

I never once offended anybody, but at the end of the day, we had an unbelievable season, a great season at that, and we did what a lot of people didn't expect us to do. Hell, we did a lot of things, we were fast into doing. People knew we were going to win, but they didn't know how fast we would win. At one point we were undefeated, and the truth of the matter is, we've got two losses. Some teams had two losses the first two weeks. For me, things [are] pretty much unchanged. You get what you get.

 

Some are wondering why you didn't jump on the pile after your second fumble. What are your memories of that moment?

I didn't get the fumble, but you can play tit for tat. I've seen numerous quarterbacks throw interceptions, and their effort afterward, they don't go. I don't dive on one fumble because the way my leg was it could have been contorted in a way.

Ok you say my effort, I didn't dive down. I fumbled, that's fine. We didn't lose that game because of that fumble, I'll tell you that. You can condemn and say, 'He gave up, this, that and the third.' But, hey, as long as my teammates know, as long as my coaches know, as long as anybody that's following this team knows. It's easy for a person to nitpick and say, 'Oh man, Cam Newton, he gave up…' That's cool, that's fine. I mean, I'm a grown man. I can understand that. But to say some things along the lines of that, and to say it to my face, that's extremely different.

 

Does the support of your teammates help?

What's already understood… [teammates cheering, singing in background] At the end of the day what's already understood shouldn't even have to be said.

So many people talked about the Carolina Panthers. So many people talked about Cam. So many people talked about Coach Rivera. But the truth of the matter is, nobody on this team got suspended for disciplinary reasons. You never once heard anybody on this team have to sit out games because of what they did. You never heard coach nor coordinator say these guys weren't coachable, so pretty much everything people say about us is fluff. They say Cam's a thug, they say players on the team are classless. We are professional athletes. Like I say, before you are quick to assume anything, what makes your way right?

 

What is your message to fans?

We will be back. I mean that. We will be back. I say that with so much emphasis.

If I offended somebody, that's cool. I know who I am, and I'm not about to conform, nor bend, for anybody's expectations, because your or anybody else's expectations will never exceed mine.