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“The Golden Super Bowl” features one quarterback who’s having an MVP-type season and another who’s the only five-time MVP winner in NFL history.
While Cam Newton has a long way to go before achieving what Peyton Manning has in his illustrious career, Newton can accomplish a feat that only two other legendary QBs have ever done.
The Carolina Panthers quarterback can join a couple Joes you may have heard of, Joe Montana and Joe Namath, as the only quarterbacks to win a major college football national championship and a Super Bowl as the primary quarterback, according to ESPN Stats & Info.
Auburn coach Gus Malzahn joined SportsCenter late on Tuesday night to chat with ESPN personality Scott Van Pelt, and he says Newton is showing the world why he’s had such lofty expectations of him since leaving The Plains.
“He’s got a chance, and I said this when he first came out, he’s got a chance to be one of the best to ever play or the best that ever played,” Malzahn said on SportsCenter. “He’s got everything. He’s got a work ethic, he’s just a great competitor, he’s very coachable, he can run, he can make all the throws. He’s got everything it takes. Everybody is seeing that now and it’s going to be fun to watch.”
Newton has led the Panthers to a 17-1 record as they get set to face the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50 on Feb. 7. During the regular season, Newton threw for 3,837 yards with 35 passing touchdowns and 10 interceptions. He also rushed for 636 yards and 10 more touchdowns.
In the team’s 49-15 destruction of the Arizona Cardinals last Sunday, Newton continued to impress. He threw for 335 yards while completing 67.5 percent of his passes and scored 4 TDs (2 passing, 2 rushing) with 1 INT.
Malzahn says Newton is just one of those rare players that steps up on big stages.
“That’s the it factor,” Malzahn said. “The special ones have it and he definitely showed that year that he had it. As the games got bigger, he played his best. He’s got the it factor.”
Carolina would certainly like that to hold true in Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Ca., to give the franchise its first Super Bowl.
Here’s Malzahn’s interview with Van Pelt on Tuesday night:
Born and raised in Gainesville, Talal joined SDS in 2015 after spending 2 years in Bristol as an ESPN researcher. Previously, Talal worked at The Gainesville Sun.
