Lifelong Panthers fan AMA (ask me anything) Cam Edition

[RASTAN99]

He's grown up.

Actually, for the first time in his career he's getting great coaching AND is being held 100% accountable.

It's amazing how much a zero-tolerance environment combined with a PSD mentality can modify behaviour for the better.

A small handful of you might be old enough to remember Ace Greenberg who ran Bear Stearns with great success for decades. Unlike most of the white-shoe Wall St. firms, at Bear Ace like to hire what he called PSD's = "poor, smart, and a deep desire to be rich".

On a relative basis that's where Cam is now, and his deep desire combined with BB's my-way-or-the-highway coaching style can be a lethal combination!

PS...in the last 4-weeks Cam has done more local radio in Boston than he did in the last 8-years in Charlotte. This may seem like a non-event but it's low-key sign of the massive differences between the institutional expectations of the Patriots vs. the Panthers --- a rigid system only helps Cam.

 

[RASTAN99]

Sorry, been on the road for a while...think I'm all caught up.

Cheers fellas (& nut huggers).

 

[Conflicted Panthers fan]

Patriots captains are elected by the players and and Cam's Patriot teammates picked him to be a captain -- again a great sign that Cam has turned over a new leaf.

You're probably unaware but this wasn't the case in Charlotte:
View attachment 28708View attachment 28714

“You’re probably unaware” of something that never happened lmao

Deangelo Williams is such a troll he wouldn’t last more than a few months on the huddle either.

 

[RASTAN99]

“You’re probably unaware” of something that never happened lmao

Deangelo Williams is such a troll he wouldn’t last more than a few months on the huddle either.


View attachment 28717

Spoken like a true nut-hugger.

Not a single player or coach ever spoke up against what DeAngelo said.

What you fail to acknowledge is what you posted was after the long-standing rules were thrown out the window in order to get Cam in as a captain & by all appearances no player vote was taken -- word is the fix was in on a hand pick by Riverboat & The Big Cat.

Note that your fellow nut-huggers at Cat Scratch Reader make no mention of an actual "vote" taking place...LOL..

 

[Gumby]

In 2015 Panthers offense was ranked #1 in the key metric -- points scored.

Broncos 2015 offense was ranked #19.

Panthers D was ranked #6 in points allowed.

Broncos D ranked #4 in points allowed.

So the matchup was #1O/#6D vs. #19O/#4D...

...who had the edge?

I think you confused yourself, if I understand your ratings, you have the panthers o against their own D?

Panthers: 1 O vs #4 D
Broncos 19 O vs # 6 D

Doesn't make your point SO much. Especially if 4D has a good day, 1O has a bad one and the refs were told to help the 19O to make a legacy/ keep it interesting.

 

[JoeA]

While I think your statement is complete nonsense I do find it interesting and...

...am curious what in your opinion were the specific "risk(s)" of "having Cam around"?

Rhule is going to rule.

It was easier to start with a clean state than run the risk of having a headache of Cam running the chance actually being good again vs his recent past history with his injuries with a team in a serious rebuilding stage. Basically just playing the odds...

Tepper my be clinical, but you run a high risk of sports fans being far from it. The way the Panthers let Olsen go prior to Cam really didn't give the face of the organization any favors with both a new owner and head coach at the helm.

Just as Cam is saying and doing the right things now, never came across that way with Tepper coming into Carolina.

As you noted, it's only my opinion, and I agree, it could be complete nonsense.

Time will tell if Rhule is going to rule, but personally I wouldn't bet on it being he's in the NFL now and not college.

 

[Conflicted Panthers fan]

Spoken like a true nut-hugger.

Not a single player or coach ever spoke up against what DeAngelo said.

What you fail to acknowledge is what you posted was after the long-standing rules were thrown out the window in order to get Cam in as a captain & by all appearances no player vote was taken -- word is the fix was in on a hand pick by Riverboat & The Big Cat.

Note that your fellow nut-huggers at Cat Scratch Reader make no mention of an actual "vote" taking place...LOL..

Read the link I posted, troll. It literally says “Rivera announces Cam as one of the six captains as voted by teammates”.

Anyway, not going to go back and forth with some weirdo troll who was banned from the Carolina Huddle message board of all places lol.

 

[RIpats88]

honestly Cam newton always had the talent. The difference is coaching and shows how important coaching really is in the NFL. Also Cam newton had some unfortunate injuries. he was having his best completion year in 2018 before his shoulder injury. And the foot injury was a freak injury that derailed last season.

How many times have we seen guys who really didnt do much on their teams come here and look like world-beaters or their performance improved and everyone is shocked. Only to get a big contract elsewhere and look like junk again. Van Noy, even Collins are good examples...Patrick chung looked lost on the eagles only for Bill to turn him into a sold SS again...

now take someone with the talent of cam newton and put him with that coaching staff and we will see what they can do.

 

[RASTAN99]

I think you confused yourself, if I understand your ratings, you have the panthers o against their own D?

Panthers: 1 O vs #4 D
Broncos 19 O vs # 6 D

Doesn't make your point SO much. Especially if 4D has a good day, 1O has a bad one and the refs were told to help the 19O to make a legacy/ keep it interesting.

I had it listed correctly.

Panthers had the #1 Offense and #6 Defense in the NFL.

Broncos Defense ranked slightly higher at #4 but their Offense was way down at #19.

Net-net, Panthers were favored to win the battle on both sides of the ball...

...but as the saying goes, that's why they play the game.

Surely you don't believe that referee nonsense but just for fun, exactly who do you suggest "told" the refs to "make a legacy/keep it interesting"?

What's the chain of custody on an order of that nature?

 

[RASTAN99]

It was easier to start with a clean state than run the risk of having a headache of Cam running the chance actually being good again vs his recent past history with his injuries with a team in a serious rebuilding stage. Basically just playing the odds...

Tepper my be clinical, but you run a high risk of sports fans being far from it. The way the Panthers let Olsen go prior to Cam really didn't give the face of the organization any favors with both a new owner and head coach at the helm.

Just as Cam is saying and doing the right things now, never came across that way with Tepper coming into Carolina.

As you noted, it's only my opinion, and I agree, it could be complete nonsense.

Time will tell if Rhule is going to rule, but personally I wouldn't bet on it being he's in the NFL now and not college.

Fair enough, thanks for reply.

Correct me if I'm wrong but in your 1st & 3rd paragraphs you're suggesting Cam was hard to manage and seen as an annoyance, and this combined with the uncertainty about his health led them to "play the odds" and part ways with him.

If so, your assessment is perfectly logical and in reality probably exactly what happened.

Personally I thought the expected value of keeping him tipped the scale in Cam's favor and I firmly believed if Cam played NFL football in 2020 it would be in a Panthers uniform -- I was wrong.

They definitely could have handled Olsen's exit much better but the decision to part ways was the correct one, in my opinion.

Rhule doesn't have tons of NFL experience (1yr) but the feedback from that time is good and I believe he has all the tools to succeed --- that's what makes a trade! (our opposing views that is)

Cheers mate.

 

[RASTAN99]

honestly Cam newton always had the talent. The difference is coaching and shows how important coaching really is in the NFL.

now take someone with the talent of cam newton and put him with that coaching staff and we will see what they can do.

Bingo.

Collect $200 and Pass GO.

To his detriment, Cam always had the hammer and that just doesn't work in the coach/player dynamic. Rivera wasn't much of a coach anyway but he was always running scared of Cam and it was a sub-optimal arrangement for both.

 

[RASTAN99]

Read the link I posted, troll. It literally says “Rivera announces Cam as one of the six captains as voted by teammates”.

There's never been any confirmation Cam was voted in -- you cited a Panthers press release that was regurgitated by NFL.com. If there's one thing we know for sure, during Jerry Richardson's tenure the team never let the truth get in the way of whatever line of BS they wanted to propagate publicly.

However, we do know a Panthers player who was there at the time unequivocally said Cam wore the "C" without being voted in by fellow players. We also know that no player or coach ever spoke up to refute that claim.

We also know in 2013 Rivera went on record saying he changed the rules for captaincy and this was done in an attempt to manipulate Cam into a captaincy spot.

For those who don't know, the Panthers typically selected 2 players from defense, 2 from offense, and 1 special teams (5 total)...as mentioned, in 2013 Rivera threw that out the window in a stab at getting Cam a "C" and said "six players would be named, regardless of position."

So 2013 was the first time the team had 6 captains...Luke & TD58 from the defense...Smitty, Ryan Khalil & Jordan Gross from the offense...

...and a coach's hand pick who was named.

Hey, that's in the past.....Cam has clearly EARNED it with the Patriots and good on him for doing so.

Imagine what he could have accomplished with competent coaching & accountability from the get-go!

 

[luuked]

honestly Cam newton always had the talent. The difference is coaching and shows how important coaching really is in the NFL. Also Cam newton had some unfortunate injuries. he was having his best completion year in 2018 before his shoulder injury. And the foot injury was a freak injury that derailed last season.

How many times have we seen guys who really didnt do much on their teams come here and look like world-beaters or their performance improved and everyone is shocked. Only to get a big contract elsewhere and look like junk again. Van Noy, even Collins are good examples...Patrick chung looked lost on the eagles only for Bill to turn him into a sold SS again...

now take someone with the talent of cam newton and put him with that coaching staff and we will see what they can do.

Agree. And it works both ways as well. The coaching staff gets to dip their feet into running a much more modern and versatile offense with a player who can execute it on a high level. So even if the collaboration between the Pats and Newton ends after this season the staff got some valuable experience and reps. This surely will reverberate in upcoming drafts and FA deals.

It will be really hard to go back to more pure passers after this experience.

 

[JoeA]

Fair enough, thanks for reply.

Correct me if I'm wrong but in your 1st & 3rd paragraphs you're suggesting Cam was hard to manage and seen as an annoyance, and this combined with the uncertainty about his health led them to "play the odds" and part ways with him.

If so, your assessment is perfectly logical and in reality probably exactly what happened.

Personally I thought the expected value of keeping him tipped the scale in Cam's favor and I firmly believed if Cam played NFL football in 2020 it would be in a Panthers uniform -- I was wrong.

They definitely could have handled Olsen's exit much better but the decision to part ways was the correct one, in my opinion.

Rhule doesn't have tons of NFL experience (1yr) but the feedback from that time is good and I believe he has all the tools to succeed --- that's what makes a trade! (our opposing views that is)

Cheers mate.

Yes, Cam came across to myself as being hard to manage. Also came across as as prima donna at times (another reason why I didn't really care for him as a pro QB). But as I had mentioned in the past, it's hard to keep hating a guy who gives footballs to kids in the stadium during live games.

In your other post after this one, you made the comment that it really wasn't a good coaching match in Carolina with Cam, and I couldn't agree more.

Olsen may of been a good move to let go, and they could of hanlded his exit better, but I also believe the Panthers organization could of handled Cam's departure better as well. You had two well liked players by the fans, and I don't think the organization did anything to help their PR. That said, it's now football time, and all is forgotton, but their actions do tell me a little more about the new organization, and it's not for the better. At the end of the day though, it all comes down to winning, and any action taken can be forgiven if the team wins.

Rhule definitely has the resume IMO to be a pro football head coach, but just when Cam came into the Panther's organization, I'm not so certain it will be a good fit with Rhule, and time will tell. I can't blame Rhule for going after the money, but I would of thought the Giants would of been a better fit. That was a positive for Tepper out hustling the Giants IMO (or the Giants dropping the ball because the impression I got was Rhule would of prefered the Giants).

 

[mosi's man]

So here we go again. Different people have different pre-concieved notions and then fit the facts (or question the facts as best we know them) to fit that narrative. Votes for team captains on all teams are, for obvious reasons, anonymous. So on a team of 53, how would any one player know whether a different player was ever voted captain or not? To the best of our ability to discern, Cam was voted captain in Carolina by his teammates. Scores of teammates have come out and praised him. But whether he was or wasn't voted captain doesn't even matter about the "truth" of this conversation. Lots of douchebags have been captains in the NFL.

Let me ask: What is the worst thing/act that Cam Newton has done since entering the NFL? Has he been arrested? Found with drugs? Gotten a DUI? Gotten caught with PEDs? Beaten a woman? Publicly undermined his coach? Dressed down a teammate publicly? In a league full of assholes, why is he perceived so badly? Give me two examples (everyone gets one free) where he crossed the line. I'll start you out; the deeply religious Newton, son of a minister, has 5 kids out of wedlock from two different women, yet I never hear any admonition about that. But as a football player, I'm waiting to hear why all the negativity.

I asked a couple days ago, what was the difference between he and Gronk. I was called an idiot for making the comparison, but I'm waiting to hear the difference in actual examples of behavior rather than in how they dress. I'd appreciate some facts, rather than all the noise.

 

[JoeA]

So here we go again. Different people have different pre-concieved notions and then fit the facts (or question the facts as best we know them) to fit that narrative. Votes for team captains on all teams are, for obvious reasons, anonymous. So on a team of 53, how would any one player know whether a different player was ever voted captain or not? To the best of our ability to discern, Cam was voted captain in Carolina by his teammates. Scores of teammates have come out and praised him. But whether he was or wasn't voted captain doesn't even matter about the "truth" of this conversation. Lots of douchebags have been captains in the NFL.

Let me ask: What is the worst thing/act that Cam Newton has done since entering the NFL? Has he been arrested? Found with drugs? Gotten a DUI? Gotten caught with PEDs? Beaten a woman? Publicly undermined his coach? Dressed down a teammate publicly? In a league full of assholes, why is he perceived so badly? Give me two examples (everyone gets one free) where he crossed the line. I'll start you out; the deeply religious Newton, son of a minister, has 5 kids out of wedlock from two different women, yet I never hear any admonition about that. But as a football player, I'm waiting to hear why all the negativity.

I asked a couple days ago, what was the difference between he and Gronk. I was called an idiot for making the comparison, but I'm waiting to hear the difference in actual examples of behavior rather than in how they dress. I'd appreciate some facts, rather than all the noise.

Look deep enough, and pretty much everyone has sinned in some fashion. Thing is, kind of like thinking it doesn't matter how much money you have if for whatever reason, you're introduced to the US justice system.

Talk about Cam's baby's momma's? Talk about the time he was busted for stealing in college or cheating at Florida, or want to talk about his father, just look into the pay for play scandle involving Cam and his dad.

News flash, kids in high school that show great potential in athlethics do get preferential treatment growing up.

I always liked on particularly QB in college and now playing pro football, and couldn't believe what an ******* and cheater he was in high school (got away with a lot of crap because everyone knew he was going to be playing pro football and be good at it) after I came across people who actually knew the man and lived in that area.

That said, in any pro athletes defense, I was probably just as big as an ******* growing up, just that I never got the national spotlight shown on me if I got caught being one, added the fact that if I was a multi millionaire in my early 20's, I'd probably be even a bigger ****. The league may be full of assholes, but so is the world.

Money really can't buy you happiness as much as we'd like to joke that it can.

Test only... *******, assholes, *******'s

 

[RASTAN99]

(i) To the best of our ability to discern, Cam was voted captain in Carolina by his teammates.

(ii) Let me ask: What is the worst thing/act that Cam Newton has done since entering the NFL? Has he been arrested? Found with drugs? Gotten a DUI? Gotten caught with PEDs? Beaten a woman? Publicly undermined his coach? Dressed down a teammate publicly? In a league full of assholes, why is he perceived so badly?

(i) A 9-year Panther great (All-Pro, Pro Bowl, 2X NFL TD leader) who is the franchise #2 career rushing leader went on the record and unequivocally stated Cam wore the "C" without being elected by his teammates. Seems his "ability to discern" would trump ours.

(ii) As the great Bobby Jones once said after he was praised for calling a 1-shot penalty on himself in the 1925 US Open that dropped him into a playoff which he ultimately lost...

..."you might as well praise a man for not robbing a bank".