Head coach Ron Rivera on QB Cam Newton:

“To see Cam do the things that he does, it does and doesn’t surprise me. Mostly because he’s a phenomenal athlete and he can do a lot of things most people can’t. But then every time something happens, like he says, ‘My heart was in my socks,’ I know exactly how he feels … It’s a lot of fun to watch him. We’re very fortunate; we have a special athlete here.”

Offensive coordinator Mike Shula, who went to Miami’s Columbus H.S., on Newton’s touchdown flip:

“After three of four years of showing him highlights from Columbus High School, he’s finally catching on a little bit. He’s not quite there, but he’s getting it after showing him my tape.”

Newton on his running ability:

“It just gives defenses another thing to worry about. I say it often, that can be my gift and curse. A lot of times I feel like I can run, and I do run, that’s an opportunity for me to throw it. When I feel like I got to throw it and not take what the defense gives me, then it’s like a give and take thing. It’s what you practice for, and hopefully the game slows down, so you can be aware of when and when not to run.”

S Roman Harper on the Panthers’ last meeting with the Saints, a 41-10 win last December in New Orleans:

“That was kind of beat down. Score 41 points, oh, I wonder who 41 is? … It’s crazy, man. The last thing you think is you’re going to go down there in a hostile environment and take it to a team like that.”

CB Josh Norman on the newfound attention he’s receiving from national media:

“I’ve just been doing the same thing I’ve been doing — work. I’m blessed and very fortunate, but at the same time, just knowing and understanding that I have a job to do … When there’s a challenge, I like to face it head on and see how I stack up to it. I guess if other people are starting to see that now, it’s a blessing.”

LB Thomas Davis on playing without Luke Kuechly in Week 2, the first time Davis hasn’t played with Kuechly since he came to Carolina in 2012:

“It was weird, it was very weird. I love playing with Luke and it’s definitely different. It’s kind of hard to put into words because we have a really good feel for what each other’s going to do. Being out there with A.J. [Klein] was different, but A.J. knows his job.”

Receivers coach Ricky Proehl on longtime Panthers coach Richard Williamson, who passed away this week:

“When I think about Richard, I laugh because we didn’t see eye-to-eye a lot. I thought it was just me, but when you talk to Moose, you talk to Mark Carrier, you talk to Steve Smith, Willie Green, that’s just the way he coached. We kind of laugh about it now where we were ready to fight him, but he brought out the best in us. He coached hard, and I think that’s one of the things as a coach, I need to do a better job. I try to relate to these guys, these young guys, and they’re a lot different in today’s game. But I think there’s sometimes where I’m disappointed in myself because I wish I had a side of me like Rich.”