The Denver Broncos got away with multiple personal fouls in their win over the Carolina Panthers Thursday night, and veteran linebacker Thomas Davis believes that has everything to do with the way NFL officials treat Cam Newton.
Newton was on the receiving end of helmet-to-helmet hits from at least three defenders. Only one flag was thrown late in the fourth quarter, and it was negated by intentional grounding. According to Davis, referees are always hesitant to flag defenders for hits on Newton because the reigning MVP is so big.
“That’s nothing new. They didn’t do anything different that hasn’t happened all along,” Davis said, via Scott Fowler of The Charlotte Observer. “It’s just something that the league is going to have to police and they’re going to have to do a better job of and start treating him like the quarterback that he is.
“They look at his size. It’s kind of like the NBA used to allow guys to get away with that against Shaquille O’Neal because of his size. But when you dig deep down into it, they talk about player safety all the time and they need to protect that player as well.”
If you remember, Newton said last season that one official told him he did not get a call because he’s not old enough. Apparently the 27-year-old has a lot working against him when it comes to drawing flags.
You can’t blame Newton or anyone in the Panthers organization for being angry over the lack of calls in Denver. While both Davis and Newton said the no-calls didn’t cost Carolina the game, these videos show how egregious they were.
