No longer the flavor of the month, Panthers quarterback Cam Newton has mustered only one win in the first full month of the NFL season, with his team at 1-4 at the bye week.
Newton has come under criticism for a variety of things, including his demeanor at post-game press conferences following a loss. Even his father, Cecil, agrees that Cam needs to be a bit less deflated and downtrodden.
“Is it something he needs to change?” Cecil Newton told WFNZ’s The Drive with Taylor and Marc. “Well yes I guess so.”
Of course, that concession came after Cecil Newton defended Cam’s habits.
“I know he hasn’t been responsive in some of his interviews [after losses] but he has been like that since he was seven years old,” said Cecil Newton, who explained that he did the spot in order to “take some of the heat off” Cam. “It’s difficult, there are some things that I don’t touch and don’t tell him what he should and shouldn’t do.”
As to the things that are causing the Panthers to lose so many games, Cecil Newton agrees with coach Ron Rivera’s assessment of Cam.
“I think he’s just pressing,” Cecil Newton said. “I think he’s maybe trying to do too much. I know my son, he is going to go back into the lab, tweak some things, work hard, and come out better. He is not in the business of making excuses. He is going to come back better.”
And Cam wants to return from the lab as a Panther. And he wants to continue to be a Panther.
“We love the Panthers,” Cecil Newton said. “And we are very appreciative of everything that this town and organization has done for us. Cam wants to stay in Carolina and I would like for him to, as long as Mr. Richardson and whoever else is in charge wants him to.
“A vast portion of Cam’s sulking and disappointment is that he has the burden of trying to deliver the goods to the Panthers fans.”
This year, Cam hasn’t. For his career, he has won only seven of 21 games. That’s a 33-percent win percentage.
And that’s enough to make every Panthers fan sulk and be disappointed.