What about Cam will revolutionize the game?

[SorthNarolina]

I remember this term being thrown around a lot before we drafted him. I still have really figured out what makes him so special in those terms.

Manning is like a hybrid OC/QB that's revolutionary.

Vick is one of the most mobile quarterbacks ever but he can also throw the ball, that's revolutionary.

Cam just seems like Culpepper, McNabb, Freeman, or Young(Steve and Vince) kind of QB. I can see him being very good even HoF, but I don't see how he is going to change the way football is played. Seems like he's just going to be really good.

I think his ability to extend plays and Smith's(if he stays) tenacious desire for the ball could turn into something ridiculous.

[Udogg]

I know you are bored and of course this is the worst month for sports, but do you really want to start one of these topics again?

[mav1234]

some people think he is a better runner than Vick and could become as good a passer as Manning(edit: in time, only a few insane people think that would happen right away). I assume they also think that includes the OC bit. I think all of that is a tremendous stretch to project that for any rookie, especially one we haven't seen play all that much, but hey whatever. I think it's more likely his game follows the lines of VY or Big Ben (or the others you named before injuries etc), because I don't expect him to be able to run like he did in college, but I could be wrong.

I think that is how it went anyway; something about how his ability to move the chains with his legs and his arm would make him impossible to defend for any length of time. I think that people like Teeray who said things like that were more speaking about how quarterbacks in this league *seem* like they are moving more towards a player who can extend plays by avoiding pressure etc until they find an opening which in turn is forcing defenses to change how they play quarterbacks and how they rush them, and that if EVERYTHING went perfectly for Cam he could be the one to really push that over the edge. There are others who just think Cam Newton is the best fuging thing ever and he's already on his way to the Hall of Fame, but many more reasonable fans have reasons for thinking he will be more than just "special."

me? Well, I'm gonna wait until I see him play in the NFL. I guess that's cheating, but I've seen too many amazing college players be completely humbled in the NFL to do more than just hope he transitions as well as others believe he will.

[YoungPanthers89]

swag

[SorthNarolina]

I know you are bored and of course this is the worst month for sports, but do you really want to start one of these topics again?

I don't understand how these topics turn so sour in the first place. It shouldn't be that hard to discuss players without the whole discussion falling apart.

[mav1234]

I don't understand how these topics turn so sour in the first place. It shouldn't be that hard to discuss players without the whole discussion falling apart.

it usually boils down to people making stupid claims or stupid comments about either Cam, or the other players on the roster he'll have to win the job from. It feels like any and all objectivity left whatever the 'debate' was about Cam way before he was even drafted. At this point, it all feels so stale, a lot of people have just taken to trolling each other instead of discussing because of the circles we go in over this stuff. (no offense to you for making the post, I understand how you mighta missed the only semi-decent explanation I heard for that crazy talk during the draft, and as Teeray can tell you, I still thought it was crazy at the time :P)

[panthers55]

How could Newton redefine the Qb position? Typically the QB in the NFL has been a drop back pure passer who was not particularly athletic or a gifted athlete. They were prized for their leadership and their ability to read defenses and throw the ball. All great characteristics and needed for the position. However, they rarely made plays with athletic ability. There have been guys in the past like Randall Cunningham, Culpeppers, Moon, and more who were black quarterbacks who were very athletic and brought elements to the position but lacked the total package. For example Cunningham was very elusive but wasn't a great passer and was injury prone being 6'5" and only 215 lbs. Vick redifined the position as a running quarterback but until last year was a good passer and didn't understand the complexity of the WCO.

What distinguished Newton as having the possibility to redefine the position is that he is very athletic and can run better than most any quarterback except for Vick. But he has the ability to throw the ball as well as most pure passers coming out of college. So he has both the running skills and the passing skills which makes him somewhat unique. He has the size of guys like Roethlisburger but is more athletic. As a result he has the possibility to redefine the position. He may not do anything but the thread is about what is special about him not whether he will in fact revolutionalize the position.

[davos]

What panthers55 said :)

[TheRealDeal]

What distinguished Newton as havig the possibility to redefine the position is that he is very athletic and can run better than most any quarterback except for Vick. But he has the ability to throw the ball as well as most pure passers coming out of college. So he has both the running skills and the passing skills which makes him somewhat unique. He has the size of guys like Roethlisburger but is much more athletic. As a result he has the possibility to redefine the position. He may not do anything but the thread is about what is special about him not whether he will in fact revolutionalize the position.

In my opinion, that is a gross overstatement of his abilities. His passing game is largely overrated based on some numbers that don't translate to how good a passer he is.

He has the chance to develop into a good passer, but at this moment, he's behind the "pure passers" as you call them.

[twylyght]

I remember this term being thrown around a lot before we drafted him. I still have really figured out what makes him so special in those terms.

Manning is like a hybrid OC/QB that's revolutionary.

Vick is one of the most mobile quarterbacks ever but he can also throw the ball, that's revolutionary.

Cam just seems like Culpepper, McNabb, Freeman, or Young(Steve and Vince) kind of QB. I can see him being very good even HoF, but I don't see how he is going to change the way football is played. Seems like he's just going to be really good.

I think his ability to extend plays and Smith's(if he stays) tenacious desire for the ball could turn into something ridiculous.

If he can be Rothl... without the rape charges, that would be good enough for me

[Cyberjag]

He's not revolutionizing anything. But imagine Roethlisburger running like Brandon Jacobs. In college, Newton ran with speed and power, but unless the play was called for running, he was a pass-first guy.

What really made him great is what we saw from Jake in his prime. As it got toward crunch time, he got better. He found ways to make the first down, and get the ball into the end zone. He made everyone around him better, anyone watching Aurburn football could tell that the entire team believed he would get it done, and played harder for it.

So take a big, mobile, strong-armed athletic QB with great intangibles and see if he can learn the playbook and how to decipher NFL defenses. If he can, then don't worry about whether he'll revolutionize the game. Because if he can figure out how to move the ball in the NFL like he did in college, he won't need to.

[4Corners]

He's already revolutionized message boards.

[CRA]

In my opinion, that is a gross overstatement of his abilities. His passing game is largely overrated based on some numbers that don't translate to how good a passer he is.

He has the chance to develop into a good passer, but at this moment, he's behind the "pure passers" as you call them.

Is there a QB coming out of college in the 2010 draft or back in the 2009 draft that you can honestly say is signifcantly ahead of Cam as a passer when looking at them translating into the NFL?

[TheRealDeal]

He's already revolutionized message boards.

I think Vick stole his thunder on becoming an "elite" passer and runner AND on message boards.

Like others have said, I don't know if he'll revolutionize the position, but if he plays it at a high level with the gifts he's been given, he'll be fine.