As the Titans prepare for today’s game at Carolina, it’s not Cam Newton’s arm they’re worried about.
At least, Newton’s passing ability isn’t the first thing Titans defensive coordinator Jerry Gray says his players need to stop. Gray says the real threat to the Titans’ defense is that Newton can beat them running the ball.
“You’ve got to make sure that all of a sudden he doesn’t turn into a runner,” Gray told the Tennessean. “That’s their secret weapon. That’s their biggest weapon.”
Before the season started, that’s what everyone said about Newton: That he wasn’t ready to be a pro passer, but he’d be a major running threat. However, Newton has proved that analysis to be half-wrong by 2,393 yards in the first eight games of the season.
It says something about how amazing a runner Newton is that even after Gray has seen Newton’s brilliant passing, he still wants to force Newton to throw.