Cam Newton is back in the groove, apparently.
Following the worst quarterback rating of his career in a loss to the Saints last week, Cam Newton shook off a slow start against the Patriots Sunday to engineer a stunning upset in New England that, frankly, didn’t look like much of an upset.
Newton appeared completely healed from last spring’s right shoulder surgery, gunning passes down the field to receivers who were left wide open by a surprisingly pathetic Patriots defense. While he doesn’t run from the zone option much anymore, he did scamper up the middle for an NFL record 50th rushing TD by a quarterback in the 33-30 win.
Newton out dueled glamour-puss passer Tom Brady, who was held in check until he led the Pats to a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns that tied the game. Then, with the help of two defensive penalties, Newton methodically marched the Cats to Graham Gano’s winning FG as the clock ran out to push the Panthers to 3-1 and a share of first-place in the NFC South.
Newton has been under much scrutiny for most of his seven years in the NFL, with national commentators harping on career statistics that are not Hall of Fame caliber or even elite. But Newton can get hot and have big games, much like he did for most of 2015 on the way to the Super Bowl.
Add his three touchdowns passes Sunday and Newton signaled he is ready to overcome the loss of tight end Greg Olsen to injury and use his two massive targets Kelvin Benjamin and Devin Funchess for enough offense to complement the Panthers’ always physical defense.
He completed 22 of 29 passes against the Pats, hitting 10 straight at one stretch after tossing the only interception of the game. It is still unclear how his receivers got so open in the New England secondary that was supposed to be a strength of the defending Super Bowl champion. But whatever the reason, Newton became a dart thrower and elusive runner before and after the Patriots rally to win in a very difficult road venue.
The schedule doesn’t get any easier with a trip to Detroit and quarterback Matt Stafford. But if Cam is back, the Panthers could again earn the status of Super Bowl contender.
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