What is the biggest reason behind Cam Newton’s improvement?
“Jerry Richardson kept Ron Rivera, which was also probably the best decision Dave Gettleman made when he got the job. He didn’t fire the coach, he kept the coach and let the consistent message take hold. You can talk about Gettleman’s drafts and you can talk about all the free agency signings, but once that quarterback reaches that crescendo where Cam is, now everything is easy. Cam has developed into a top-notch quarterback who will ultimately, I believe, be the NFL MVP. I think it’s just a matter of maturity, time and consistency that’s worked well for him.”
The way you were talking earlier, it sounds like you think the Panthers are going to win Sunday?
“I do. I can’t give you the score right now because people pay me a lot of money to do that on Sunday. The problem is the past two weeks I’ve been wrong.”
Is it going to be close?
“I think that Peyton’s going to have enough to keep it close and I guess there’s a sympathetic part of me that says, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice it to have Peyton lead a final two-minute drill to get the final touchdown?’ That would be cementing a legacy. That would be the coolest thing. That would be like when Elway left.”
What challenges does Thomas Davis face playing with a cast on his arm two weeks after breaking it?
“It’s tough because we play with our hands and the majority of the time we’re pushing somebody off of us, disengaging, trying to walk off blocks or taking on fullbacks. It will be interesting to see how strong the support is if he falls to the ground and needs to catch himself while falling. If I’m the Denver Broncos, I’m trying to cut his legs out to make him have to support himself and fall. That’s just the nature of the beast.”
What changes have you seen in Newton the past couple years?
“I think when they got rid of Steve Smith, he became the unquestioned leader in that locker room, especially from an offense standpoint. I think Mike Shula has to get a lot of credit too for designing an offense that suited Cam. He didn’t try to say, ‘This is my system, you have to learn how to play in my system.’ Instead, he said, ‘These are the things that you do well, and we’re going to force teams to beat us at what you do best.'”
Newton said last week he feels part of why he’s criticized is because he’s a black QB. Do you agree?
“Sometimes we don’t understand why we’re criticized unfairly, but it just happens. I loved Tim Tebow, but I never understood why he got more coverage, why he was part of the conversation as a backup. You can’t explain certain things, and why Cam is unjustly criticized — who knows? I’m sure everybody does it for different reasons, and he voiced some of his frustrations, but I don’t know if it’s completely accurate. It could be. I think we should be highlighting this guy and putting him on a pedestal and saying, ‘This is how we want to see the game played. This is how our superstars should act.’ Like showing up for Halloween? Unfortunately, that doesn’t make Page Six. That doesn’t make the back pages. That’s not splashy. Nobody wants to hear about a nice guy making a lot of money doing a lot of nice things.”
How tough is it for a defender to tackle Newton?
“When you see him go airborne against a linebacker, you don’t feel sorry for him. You feel sorry for the linebacker.”
People glorified Brett Favre’s love of the game, but they seem to hold it against Cam Newton. Why?
“I think people view Cam sometimes as being more self-serving and maybe with Brett, it was more he was playing the game. I don’t disagree that some people who are offended by it should also look into the individual and see what he does in his community. When he scores a touchdown, you can get upset with him, but then when he goes over and hands the ball to the little kid in the first row, I can’t really be that upset.”
But you’re not a fan of some of the Panthers’ celebrations?
“I don’t know if it’s a new-age thing, but it’s one of these deals that it can be in the form of being almost disrespectful. I like Ron Rivera and we’ll talk about some of these things during a Sunday interview.”
It seems like at least once a game, Greg Olsen finds himself wide open. How?
“Because of Cam Newton, and nothing against Greg Olsen, it’s a combination of both. But when you go against the Carolina offense, you have to stop Cam Newton first and second because he can run and pass. Then you have to stop the run game. So after that, you’re thinking Greg’s the fourth option … I guarantee you Greg’s going to get past the Denver defense at least a couple times unless they have a really, really good game plan for him and they’re not going to fall for the Okie-Doke. But you can’t help it when Cam’s getting five to six yards a clip.”
On Newton’s development
“He has basically grown up right in front of our eyes. He is a quarterback who is very much in control of his team, very much in control of his offense and what he does on the field. He’s an extraordinary athlete and he uses every bit of his athleticism.”
Which defense impresses you more?
“Carolina’s going to see the fastest defense they’ve played. They’re going to see the best group of defensive backs they’ve seen all year. It’s not even close. But I think the defensive front for Carolina, these are big men, even by today’s NFL standards. When Carolina gets off the bus, you go, ‘Wow!’ That’ll be a great matchup to watch: Carolina’s defensive front — the strength of it — against Denver’s offense.”
