Panthers radio analyst Eugene Robinson
(On what he told the team about the temptations of Super Bowl week)
"If a team beats you, that's different. If you beat yourself, that's criminal. I allowed myself to beat the team, and that was criminal."
Panthers head coach Ron Rivera
(On Robinson's speech to the team)
"I think it was outstanding. I think it was one of the bravest things I've seen a guy do. When he got done, our guys gave him an ovation. For him to step up and relive that and tell the guys he was wrong, he forgot he was there. That's a huge message."
Panthers WR Philly Brown
(On Robinson's message)
"This is not a vacation. We have a game to win. You can go to San Fran and have whatever fun you want, but we're here for one reason. If we do all this and lose a ballgame, then none of this means anything ... I'm not going anywhere. There's nothing in San Francisco for me."
Panthers FB Mike Tolbert
(On Rivera "holding his breath" about guys making curfew Tuesday night)
"You've gotta let grown men be grown men. We've got a quality group of guys on this team, so nobody's going to go out and do anything stupid. If you're a grown and another grown man is telling you that's not a place to be, the majority of the time nobody's going to do it."
Panthers S Tre Boston
(When asked who was more likely to break curfew - Star Lotuelei or Jerricho Cotchery)
"Ooh. Star's family is already here. Jerricho's never gonna leave. You've gotta push it. I've put everything on the line to say they're not going out, like my whole bank account."
Panthers QB Cam Newton
(on the advice he would give to a high school student)
“Dream. Don’t be afraid to dream. I was in their position. At times, I find myself thinking like a high school student, 16, 17 years old. Whatever you decide to do, whether you’re a firefighter, I’ll tell you what my father told me: just be good at something. He said if you’re good at something, if you’re great at something, you can always get compensated for it whether you’re the best firefighter, you’re the best police officer, you’re the best artist, the best rapper, the best preacher, football player, basketball player, your talent, your skill alone will get you compensated for what you want in this life. I’m happy that I had the influence of people like my father in my life and it’s carried me through to this part that I’m in right now.”
Panthers LT Michael Oher
(on if he appreciates this Super Bowl more than the first one because of his journey in between)
“Probably a little bit. You come from one of the worst teams to one of the best teams. You get people telling you that you’re not good enough to be around anymore and now you’re here in the Super Bowl. It just shows that you can do anything you want to and that you put your mind to. Just don’t listen to people or what people say. You’ve got to look yourself in the mirror. You can’t put your dreams and the things that you want to accomplish in other people’s hands.”
Panthers DT Jared Allen
(on Coach Rivera relating to the players because he once was one of them)
“That’s why I like Coach Rivera so much. It is hard to describe, there is just something about him where he is cool, calm, and collected. He gets it and allowed me to vent, but then at the end of the day he has to make the decision and I am going to respect it. Now we are sitting here getting ready to play in Super Bowl 50, so it’s a pretty cool deal.”
Panthers WR Jerricho Cotchery
(on his reaction to hearing Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson retired)
“Anytime a guy just retires out of nowhere, it doesn’t surprise me at all because of what this game requires in order for a guy to be at his best on Sunday. Obviously, the work that you put into it, you want to see results from it. You want to go to the playoffs. You want to play in these types of games right here. So, when you’re not able to do that, it takes a toll on you. Obviously, he’s a wonderful player. Every time I’ve played against him, he’s just an extremely down to earth guy. The game will miss him if he goes through with it.”