Would you rather.....Cam Newton edition

[Hotsauce]

When I think of hard hits Cam has taken, the first hit that comes is he Miami game last year when Cameron Wake hit Cam and made him spit up blood.

Notice where he was when he got hit....

[Marguide]

Cam has never taken a hard hit running in an NFL game. NEVER. 467 rushes, 2,571 yards, 33 touchdowns & he's never taken a hard hit.

 

 

That's about 98% true.

 

I remember his first year against Washington he was trying to make the end zone and got windmilled as he went out of bounds. It might have been London Fletcher with the hit; can't remember all the details. So yeah, he's taken a few through the years, but the greatest danger is definitely the hits he takes in the pocket.

[Semaj]

He needs to be a souped up version of Steve Young which is a pocket passer that can run like an antelope and a bull combo when necessary and keeps the defense more honest with his threat to break a 15 to 20 yard run at any moment.  

[FootballMaestro]

I hear a lot of disagreement on letting Cam be Cam. Ultimately, letting Cam be Cam is opening him up to taking monster hits because he runs. Monster hits have started taking their toll injury-wise with the young QB.

Another popular opinion is we should turn him into a pocket passer first, with the option to run if things break down. Obviously if you take less hits, theoretically you have a longer NFL career.

It's no secret that we have been winning the last few games by letting Cam be Cam and running wild. I'm not saying he wouldn't be successful as a pocket passer, but it's obvious his running ability quite simply gets the W.

Now I am interested in your thoughts on this hypothetical situation....which would you prefer???

Option A, let Cam be Cam.

-it's a very good possibility that we win 1 Super Bowl within two years

-we are only get Cam for 3-5 years due to career limiting injuries.

Option B, make Cam a pocket passer first, with option to run if things breakdown.

-we continue to develop Cam and bring in someone to help with his accuracy and footwork.

-we have a good outlook over the next 4-6 years but no real shot at being a true contender.

-we keep Cam healthy with the possibility of maybe getting lucky and winning a SB down the road

 

What makes you think the Panthers couldn't win the Superbowl playing Option B (but you do A)??

 

So you're going to let a four game stretch determine what you feel is good for Newton, when he's already that both he and the team can be very successful (in stretches) performing option B.

 

Personally, I think Cam is best with option B. If you look at the times Cam has many called runs  (option A), the team has suffered, such as the first half of his second year, and the stretch after Cincy this year.

 

However, if you look at the second half of his second year, his third year in general, hist first 5 games this year, and even large stretches of his first year, Newton's been better/excellent.

 

That stats show, Newton's better under center and out of the shot gun. More read option and called runs, actually make Cam worse. End of story.

 

Because of this and personal reasons, I choose option B.

[PantherFanOne]

Option 1...Let Cam be Cam. When you have a QB with his skillset it would be foolish to waste it. The longer Cam plays the smarter he will get,he is still a young NFL QB,so i feel the best is yet to come and that translates into winning more games.

[FootballMaestro]

Cam has never taken a hard hit running in an NFL game. NEVER. 467 rushes, 2,571 yards, 33 touchdowns & he's never taken a hard hit.

His ankle injury was suffered at Auburn when he was running 25 times a game. His rib injury was a preseason freak injury. His back injury came from a car wreck.

He's built like a Cyborg & avoids contact. The only time he doesn't avoid contact is at the goal line.

Cam takes harder hits standing in the pocket. Tom Brady & Peyton Manning suffered serious, potential career ending injuries from the pocket.

Making Cam a pure pocket passer is like making Michael Jordan a pure jump shooter. Can he do it? Yeah. He can develop into one of the best at it, but you're handcuffing him & eliminating a part of his game that makes him special.

 

Option B, wasn't making Cam a pure, or only Pocket Passer. It gave him the option to run when needed.

 

However, Option A, was more about Cam running more read option and going Whole Hog on the running aspect, along with his passing.

 

I choose Option B.

[joemac]

The first downs, touchdowns and just all around tough yards Cam picks up on the ground are just invaluable to the offense. Just about every time he takes off he picks up at least a first down.

His running really adds an extra dimension to the offense and often times breaks the heart of the opposition. No way do you limit his running or even try and reel it in at all right now. It's just too important.