The NFL says Cam Newton’s style of play is the reason the Carolina Panthers quarterback seems to get fewer calls than some of his counterparts around the league.
In response to criticism over several helmet-to-helmet shots that Newton fell victim to last Thursday against the Denver Broncos, NFL vice president of officiating Dean Blandino admitted the officials in the game missed one call that should have been a personal foul. Some of the other hits, he says, have to do with Newton becoming a runner because of his “posture.”
“It’s basically the posture will dictate his protection,” Blandino explained on NFL Total Access Tuesday. “So if he’s in running posture, ball tucked, advancing it as a runner, he’s treated like a runner and he doesn’t get special protection. If he’s in a passing posture, whether he’s inside the pocket/outside the pocket, he’s still going to get passer protection — head, neck, crown to the body — those types of protection. So it’s the posture that dictates the protection.
“You can be scrambling in the pocket/outside the pocket, tuck the ball and then bring the ball up to throw and throw a forward pass. So you go from a runner to a passer again, so it can go back and forth.”
One flag was thrown for an illegal hit on Newton in the fourth quarter, and it was negated by an intentional grounding call. Despite only one penalty, two Broncos players were fined for hits on Cam. You can see videos of the plays here.
In Blandino’s defense, it can be difficult to determine when a scrambling quarterback crosses the line from passer to runner. Having said that, some of the hits against Newton were egregious. Flags should have been thrown on at least three plays regardless of his “posture.”
