CHARLOTTE, N.C. — One of the most important lessons Cam Newton learned about the NFL came long before he ever became the lightning rod of Super Bowl 50.
It was back in 2011, when the recent Heisman Trophy winner was training for the NFL Scouting Combine and Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon was one of his advisers. Newton once asked Moon about his biggest regret during a career that ended with Moon being the first black quarterback inducted into the Hall. It was simple, Moon told him: He wished he could’ve had more fun playing the game.
That story is brought up today because we’re still a week removed from trying to make sense of why Newton is considered such a polarizing athlete. TheCarolina Panthers quarterback attacked the subject last week by going with the easiest explanation — he said being a black quarterback “may scare a lot people” before telling ESPN later that he “didn’t mean it to come off as a race thing” — but there is more to it. Newton is a black quarterback who is playing the game on his own terms. That is the part of this conversation that requires more attention, largely because Newton is showing us the next challenge facing black quarterbacks.
Moon believed he had to fit into a popular notion of what a quarterback was supposed to be in his days. That meant being serious, stoic and always aware of how everyone else was viewing him. Newton, on the other hand, gets to be gregarious, goofy and intensely committed to making everyone respond to him. It’s freedom we’re talking about here, the kind that every minority longs to feel in a world where assimilation is too often the only route to the top.
As Moon pointed out, Newton represents evolution.
“First, we had to prove we could play the position,” Moon said. “Then we had to face questions about our leadership abilities. Even when you look at the guys who played the position in my time — myself, Doug Williams, even a Randall Cunningham — we were all laid back. Now it’s more of a ‘me’ generation and you can show more of your personality. It used to be that you had to be more like a politician than a football player to be a black quarterback. Cam plays the game with his personality.”
It’s also important to point out that Newton is now winning while he’s doing that. If he were merely enjoying himself on a mediocre Panthers team — as was the case a few years back — he wouldn’t be such a subject of interest. His critics would bash him for all his flaws and then complain that he cared too much about style over substance. They’d also be counting the days until he flopped in the same manner as Washington Redskins QB Robert Griffin III.
See, nobody cares if Antonio Brown shimmies after a touchdown reception or Von Miller shakes his butt following a sack. Those guys can do whatever they want because they’re viewed as supporting characters. When Newton starts dancing or taking victory laps or dabbing incessantly, it makes his attackers wonder if he really does understand everything that comes with being a leader. It makes them feel as if he’s defacing a position that is easily the most sanctified in sport.
Those people don’t see how Newton has grown from a quarterback who never even called a play in college to somebody who operates an offense that led the league in scoring this season. They don’t give him credit for enjoying an MVP year with an underwhelming set of wide receivers after his top target, Kelvin Benjamin, sustained a season-ending knee injury in training camp. Let’s also not forget about the impact off the field. Newton has to lead the league in making little children light up every time he reaches the end zone.
Complete story visit:
http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000000631356/article/cam-newton-polarization-the-truth-about-race-at-quarterback
Be the first to comment