Newton's Law

Newton will lead an inexperienced Panthers
team into the NFL regular season.

When Cam Newton arrived in Carolina earlier this summer not only did he become Jimmy Clausen's newest teammate, but biggest rival. Clausen didn't buy into all the hype and his colligate accolades, refusing to surrender his jersey number 2 to the former Auburn Tiger standout, a number Newton he worn while playing in Alabama.

He will however be surrendering his job as the Panthers starting signal caller.

Despite being trounced by the defending American Football Conference champion Pittsburgh Steelers 33-17 in their fourth and final preseason game Thursday, first-year head coach Ron Rivera named Newton his starter under center for their Week 1 season opener against the Arizona Cardinals, Sept. 11.

Newton orchestrated a nine-play, 71-yard drive in the first quarter that saw him run for 19 yards and was capped off by throwing his first professional touchdown pass. A 10-yard strike to tight end Jeremy Shockey, tying the score.

Newton's final preseason numbers consist of him completing 24 of 57 pass attempts for 300 yards, 1 TD with 0 interceptions. Much like in college, Newton used his speed and athleticism to move through defenses, scrambling for 86 yards and a score.

Throwing Newton right into the fire has become a theme over the last couple of seasons, with many teams believing in their rookie quarterbacks and it yielding results.

In 2008 two rookie quarterbacks stepped into the lime light for their respective teams and thrilled NFL fans. Matt Ryan took over for the suspended Michael Vick in Atlanta and led the Falcons to an 11-5 record along with a playoff berth. Joe Flacco did the same in Baltimore after being drafted in the first-round out of Delaware, leading a veteran team all the way to the AFC Championship game.

Following in his footsteps would be current New York Jets' quarterback Mark Sanchez. New York drafted Sanchez with the fifth overall pick in 2009 and then help guide them to the AFC Championship game, somewhere they have been both years Sanchez has maned the huddle.

Although both Flacco and Sanchez were beneficiaries of having top notch defenses on their side en route to their deep postseason runs.

The Lions' Matthew Stafford was yet another rookie quarterback that was set to start for his team in '09, but was limited to just 10 games after suffering a season-ending shoulder injury early.

In his sophomore season, Bradford looks to seize
control of a weak NFC West.

St. Louis' Sam Bradford is the most recent rookie to post an impressive first-year campaign, throwing for 3,512 yards with 18 TDs and 15 INTs. While Bradford did not lead the Rams to a playoff appearance, he was however named the NFL's AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, becoming the fourth quarterback in the last 7 years to do so and the first since Ryan received the honor in '08.

Just like every first-year player, Newton is going to have his fair share of rookie mistakes and breakdowns, but with the explosiveness of running back DeAngelo Williams and rare combination of speed and power of linebacker Jon Beason, the Panthers' stock could be well on the rise.

The Cam Newton Era in Carolina is underway.