Cam Newton by Benjamin Southerland

Author:Benjamin Southerland [Southerland, Benjamin]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-01-02T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 8: Third Time’s the Charm

But Cam’s third year began with a little controversy. In the offseason, the Panthers lost their all-time-great wide receiver, Steve Smith, to free agency. Smith was outspoken about his frustration with the decision, and many in Carolina were heartbroken by the move—namely, because there was a question as to whether or not a rookie wide receiver would prove to be as strong of a target for Cam as Smith had been. To make matters worse, the season started with an ugly season-opening loss at home to Russell Wilson and the Seattle Seahawks and a tough road loss to the Buffalo Bills in Week 2; many thought that they might have put the cart before the horse—and the consensus in Charlotte was that Ron Rivera needed to be canned immediately. However, Cam continued to defend his coach in press conferences and took a significant amount of the blame for the early struggles. This was a marked improvement on his part, and showed a great amount of maturity that shut all of his former naysayers down.

In Week 3, the Panthers got their first W of the 2013 season, at home against the New York Giants. And it wasn’t just a win, it was a demolition—the Panthers took it 38-0. Kelvin Benjamin appeared to be the weapon that Cam had been looking for, after all.

The following week, they had a bye, and Cam looked rusty in Week 5, where they would lose to the Cardinals on the road.

However, what followed was the greatest stretch the Panthers had ever seen. From Weeks 6 to 13, the Panthers didn’t lose a single game, and they finished the regular season at 12-4. Once more, Cam was selected to a Pro Bowl, but more importantly, he finally led the Panthers to the playoffs, including a first-round bye.

Their first playoff opponent came in the form of the San Francisco 49ers, whose quarterback Colin Kaepernick had the build, the game, and perhaps the swagger that more resembled Cam than any other player in the league. Kaepernick had inundated the media recently with juicy fodder, implying that he was sick of Cam’s signature Superman pose that he made after touchdowns, where he would mime the motions of tearing his jersey apart at the front like the famous Clark-Kent-turned-hero. Needless to say, tensions were high for the battle.

Alas, Cam would struggle in his postseason debut. Though the Panthers held a small lead at halftime at 10 to 6, San Francisco would rally, intercepting Cam four times in the second half and sacking him twice. Kaepernick used weapon Anquan Boldin through the air to rack up almost all of his yardage, and that, coupled with a stifling 49ers defense, would be more than enough to take the Panthers down.

But that was far from the most painful episode for the Panthers, and particularly for Cam: after scoring a rushing touchdown in the third quarter, Kaepernick turned to the Carolina crowd and, puffing his chest out, did his best copycat attempt of Cam’s signature Superman move.

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