Former Jets QB Greg McElroy Says Cam Newton Quit' On Panthers In Super Bowl 50

ESPN ^ | 2/9/16 9:16 PM ET

[drewh]

Former New York Jets quarterback Greg McElroy, best remembered for his out-of-nowhere criticism of the team's "corrupt" locker room chemistry after the 2011 season, unloaded Tuesday on a different target -- Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton.

McElroy, speaking on SiriusXM Radio, said Newton "quit" on his team for refusing to jump on his own fumble in the fourth quarter of the Panthers' 24-10 loss to the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl 50. McElroy, retired from football, is an analyst for the SEC Network.

"I have big issues with the way Cam handled himself not only on the field, but in the postgame as well," McElroy said. "If you're going to act like Superman and call yourself Superman, well, you better be able to answer the tough questions. He wasn't able to do so."

"What I have issues with is the way he did not jump on the fumble after he dropped the ball -- and I know he was getting beat up all game -- but he jumped away from the ball when the ball's on the ground. I have never, not one time in my life, seen a player do that, especially a quarterback. And you know what? His teammates will look at him a little different after that, especially his teammates on the defensive side of the football."

[rlmorel]

Jurgenson was one hell of a quarterback, and I remember that quote!

[mac_truck]

I agree 100%.

In the clip I posted Brady got up and called a sneak on the very next play...scored the TD and was shown giving a pumped up roar on the sidelines.

[rlmorel]

Even in his youngest, and most inexperienced days, the thought of Tom Brady laying down on the ground like that, or when Newton was in the end zone after getting thrown to the ground, lay there kicking his feet and hands like a tantrum thowing toddler, or Daryl Hannah as the Replicant in "Blade Runner" is ludicrous:

Unbelievable. That is why Tom Brady is one of the all time great quarterbacks, and Cam Newton is a narcissistic, petulant, spoiled baby. Newton might be able to suppress that side, but it will come out under pressure.

He will be a good quarterback in the league, but not a great one.

[Talisker]

At the time Cammy backed up it looked more likely that a Raven would recover the ball

Look carefully, he was crouched over the ball, a DENVER hand reaches out and touches the ball, and then that's where he suddenly stops and backs up. Its right there in the video clip, that's why I posted it.

[Drawsing]

I see what you are saying, and it could be true. If the ball is between your feet, all you could do would be a quick squat and end up sitting on it. You would need to back up a bit in order to grab it.

A lot of this stuff is being exaggerated. Cam does have some maturing to do, but he did go straight over to Peyton Manning to congratulate him. Then he did his best at the press conference answering questions before he left early.

[rlmorel]

All Brady does is play hard. Real football fans like you, who have watched football for a long time and appreciate it, see that.

I admit, it wasn’t until I was well into my twenties until I didn’t “hate” Roger Staubach any more.

[MortMan]

No, Cam literally jumped away from the loose football after he fumbled it.

It was embarrassing, especially for a super bowl.

[1Old Pro]

Cam is going to be another flash-in-the-pan like Kaepernick.

And so many others.

[Ronald_Magnus]

[Vigilantcitizen]

I am a long suffering Falcons fan.

I told everyone that would listen...having watched my birds play the panthers twice a year....that if Cam gets hit hard early...he is done.

He is all smack talk when things are good, but let one bad thing happen...he is on the bench with a towel on his head sulking.

The HIGHLIGHT of my birds season this past year was beating the undefeated panthers. Falcon DT Hageman trucked a guard early and hit Cam hard. And rookie DE Beasely harrased him all game...including the game winning strip sack,

[NorthMountain]

He is going to get injured,

Because every coach, and every linebacker, all the way down to HS Freshman Squad, knows he can be rattled. Badly. And they'll be gunning for him.

[Talisker]

If the ball is between your feet, all you could do would be a quick squat and end up sitting on it. You would need to back up a bit in order to grab it.

Except that in the first few frames you see him running towards it. Then there's a fight over it in front of him. So the ball was never between his feet.

He deliberately stopped himself from jumping on it, and he was right there. It very much looks like a payoff to throw the game, since he's also the one who dropped it in the first place. The only alternative is that he was intimidated and we're looking at physical cowardice.

[mad_as_he$$]

Marino? Not so much.

[dp0622]

yeah I double thought that one lol

[spel_grammer_an_punct_polise]

“and embarrassed himself at the press conference.”

Yes, wore a hoodie, sat there like a thug, answered questions like a thug and walked away from the questioning like a defiant thug.

He is staying right in his stereotypical image.

[rlmorel]

I know it is a cliche, and more-so, just a movie, but there was a movie that came out a while back with Kevin Costner called "Draft Day".

Cam Newton seems to me EXACTLY like the consensus #1 draft pick quarterback in that movie.

Talent. Cool. Schmoozing. Good Looking. Seemed to make all the right plays.

No character at all. None. Zero.

At about 2:08 left in the game, when Cam Newton got bounced on the ground in the end zone and had his mini-hissy fit because he thought there should have been a penalty, and then stood up and began pawing at his chin strap like he was going to rip off his helmet and throw it. He looked exactly like this consensus #1 draft pick quarterback in the movie, who began to have a meltdown when he didn't go at the number one spot in the draft, and his agent had to calm him down, reminding him that everyone out there, including his future teammates and other NFL players, would see that and remember it. He implored him to get a hold on himself (ostensibly so the agent's cash-cow would still be worth something when he began playing in the league, and an agent has to help his client maintain his marketability so he can make money off of him)

Now, Cam Newton pawed at, but didn't unbuckle his chin straps. He didn't rip his helmet off, but I suspect that was simply the automatic voice inside his head that said:

"*****STOP. DO NOT UNBUCKLE YOUR CHIN STRAP, BECAUSE THE NEXT STEP IS TO TAKE THE HELMET OFF. THAT WILL CAUSE A PENALTY. AND IF YOU TAKE YOUR HELMET OFF, YOU WILL THROW IT. THAT WILL SIGNAL A FULL-BLOWN MELTDOWN. DO NOT UNBUCKLE YOUR CHIN STRAP."*****

The way he pawed at his chin straps with the twitching of the fingers is completely reminiscent of the way an extremely agitated person paws at their mouth or face, as if they want to rip it open to let a scream out. I think he was saved, because every NFL player knows what happens if the helmet comes off on the field of play...a yellow flag. So he was lucky something at a primal football-level kicked in for him.

This picture above, out of context of the video that was surrounding it is misleading. It shows someone with a calm sense of disappointment, one we have seen every quarterback who has ever played the game display. Eyes closed, face set. But it is a **still** picture.

In context of the video, his fingers were pawing, his face was grimacing and twitching, and lucky for him, he hit that built in, ingrained football player stop that said "DON'T TAKE YOUR HELMET OFF."

And fortunately for him, he managed to keep it in. If you watch the television replay, you can't see his face as he gets up off the ground, but I'll wager it was a hair from spittle-lipped twitching. Watch the replay and look at the faces of the people with cameras...they can see what is happening, and are all struggling to get their cameras around and on Newton before what they see disappears, but I think they mostly fail...which is good for Cam Newton. Just my take, but I have seen that before in people and players. Heck, I've been there myself. The difference is, I (and most people) never swaggered around when I was on top with a grin on my face wiping my opponent's faces in the dog crap, kissing my biceps or whatever it is he was accustomed to doing to his vanquished opponents. I don't have a problem with celebrations. A lot of players do them, and it isn't a big deal. They deserve it. But what Cam Newton has done has rubbed more than a few people the wrong way, and me as well, so it isn't just me. His "celebrations" have something in there that is very personally directed. I detest that.

You live by that sword, you die by that sword.

[Chode]

LOLOL!!! 100%

[Mike Darancette]

At the same time #67 of the Panthers was diving for the ball too so I think it is hard to know what Cammy saw from his angle. He did eventually get into the pile. I don’t think he is a coward, maybe he just made a business decision.