Cam Newton has been a polarizing figure since he led Auburn to a national championship back in 2010, and the Carolina Panthers quarterback has a theory about why that may be.
While speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Newton was asked about some of the scrutiny he has faced this year both on and off the field. He believes it has something to do with the color of his skin.
“I’m an African-American quarterback that may scare a lot of people because they haven’t seen nothing that they can compare me to,” Newton said, via Jonathan Jones of the Charlotte Observer.
Newton has been referred to as a “showboat,” and he kind of is one. There are a lot of players — both white and black — who simply hand the ball to the official and go about their business after scoring. Newton, on the other hand, never misses an opportunity to celebrate a touchdown even if people are fighting 10 feet away from him.
Some people don’t like the dancing. Other people don’t agree with Newton and his girlfriend (who we wrote about here) recently having a baby out of wedlock. Even more are bothered by Newton taking signs from fans of opposing teams and destroying them.
And if he didn’t do all that, Newton believes he would face the same criticism.
“Whether you win, lose or draw, people are going to talk,” he said. “Now the true fans — they know what’s up. They’re going to be supportive whatever happens. … But people are going to judge and have their own opinion on certain things that I don’t have control over nor does anybody else.”
As ESPN’s Robert Flores noted earlier this year, no one seemed to care when Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce broke out a flamboyant end zone dance. Flores believes that is because Kelce is white. You could argue that Newton is a superstar and Kelce isn’t, which is why Cam finds himself under the microscope more often.
Personally, I think what Newton has accomplished this season is remarkable. If you want to see him stop dancing, he has already told us all what it will take. Whether you’re a fan of Newton or not, you have to admire the way he has remained true to who he is and turned it into an MVP-caliber season.
