Cam Newton's defense of his pouting shows fallacy of culture war debate
Cam Newton refused to apologize for his relatively brief and not particularly loquacious media conference following the Carolina Panthers' loss Sunday in Super Bowl 50.
"Show me a good loser and I'll show you a loser," Newton told reporters in Charlotte on Tuesday.
This was a tremendous answer and not because it propped up one side of the debate surrounding Cam or devastated the other side of the debate surrounding Cam. Instead it did both to both.
Dislike Cam because he's a pompous, look-at-me modern star lacking grace and class … how about channeling some Vince Lombardi? Is that old-school enough for you?
Love Cam and believe every bit of criticism thrown his way is based on cultural misunderstanding, mean-spiritedness and the fact the NFL didn't create a safe space for him to deal with the micro (or macro) aggressions Von Miller unleashed on him … no, he acted exactly how he wanted to act. It was genuine. He meant it.
Cam has become a piñata in the middle of a culture war debate that is usually long on ridiculousness and short on realness. The Fox News/MSNBC-ization of the country is about black and white. Life is lived in the gray.
Many tried to make Newton fit into whatever worldview they wanted, but if you actually listened to his full news conferences, rather than pluck a quote, you'd find that what he said was often meandering, uncertain, contradictory and, quite frankly, honest for the majority of Americans who don't obsess over politics.
He mostly sounded like a 26-year-old who was more focused on winning the Super Bowl than becoming the Muhammad Ali of the NFL. He hadn't thought it all the way through. That should've been fine, he isn't running for president. He is just a guy.
Few, it seemed, were willing to let him sit in peace. They still won't.
Pouting is never a good look, even in the wake of a Super Bowl loss. Newton will likely realize that with time and maturity. Grace and professionalism are rarely the wrong tact, which is why virtually every Super Bowl loser for half a century has endured a few minutes of introspection. It's part of the job.
That said, it wasn't that big of a deal. Newton was magnanimous with Peyton Manning, and likely other Denver Broncos, out on the field. His failure to act like the others merely gave his detractors ammo. He'll likely learn he can sometimes win a battle before it starts.
For instance, the more interesting post-Super Bowl issue was why he didn't jump on a fourth-quarter fumble with the Super Bowl in the balance. By not explaining himself postgame, he opened himself up to 36 hours of getting his will to win questioned, something that never appeared in doubt with this guy. His explanation was he was at an awkward angle, which makes sense and would've likely defused some of the heat.
"I don't dive on one fumble because the way my leg was," Newton said. "It could have been [bent] in a way. OK, you say my effort. I didn't dive down. I fumbled. That's fine. But we didn't lose that game because of that fumble. I can tell you that."
The best part of Newton on Tuesday was the self-confidence, the unapologetic manner, the no-excuse making admission of what he is and what he was doing.
The most depressing revelation for those who like Cam Newton would have been what some of his over-the-top apologists were coming up with, the worst being that Newton walked out of that news conference because he overheard Broncos cornerback Chris Harris talking about how Denver's game plan was to make Newton throw.
A Cam who would have been so affected by that would have been a really bad look, not to mention one that would have made no sense. He acted like that way because Harris said sort-of mean things about him? Come on. That level of softness would have been dispiriting. This was a level of coddling that would have been dispiriting to see in a player who has taken over the NFL this past season.
He likes to pretend he has a Superman logo under his jersey. He knows it's also a target. He's been playing football for years and has undoubtedly heard every nasty insult and comment known to man. Denver wasn't the first team to try to intimidate and bully Newton, it was just the first one to be successful in a long time. Instead of leaning on the Harris excuse, Newton owned it. He's neither looking for nor offering any sympathy.
"If I offended anyone, that's cool … I don't have to conform to anybody's wants for me," Newton said. "I'm not that guy. This is a great league with or without me. I am my own person."
This was what Lombardi would say. This is what Bill Belichick would say.
No crying about everyone being unfair to him and misunderstanding him and piling on him, just an acknowledgement that he acted how he wanted to act and he didn't care what the fallout was.
Oh, and this is how he plans to act going forward, so fair warning.
It's along the lines of how he is going to continue dancing and dabbing, and the best way to stop him is to stop him. Denver did. You didn't see any antics on Sunday. That was impressive to watch.
Newton will still be used as a pawn, of course. Some will still hate how he acts. Some will still hate how people hate how he acts. Everyone is entitled to their opinions. Everyone can root for or against whomever they want. It doesn't make them a good or bad person. Sports can be a lot of fun when you stop trying to force people to act exactly like you think you'd act, or how you'd wish they'd act so they can prove your political point, letting human beings be who they are and consider what's interesting about their chosen behavior.
Cam Newton is a terrible loser and, no, that may not be an ideal trait, but it sure isn't the worst either, especially by NFL standards.
It is his thing though. He doesn't want anyone to feel sorry for him about it. Like him, dislike him, whatever.
"I am who I am," Newton said.
That's never a bad mentality to possess.
