Cam Newton loves playing his hometown Falcons, a matchup that’s usually good for some fun. Sunday was more like a clinic.
The College Park-native the Falcons faced this time was the grown-up Cam. This was the NFL MVP-candidate Cam. This was the fifth year NFL quarterback leading his team on an undefeated run, now at 13-0, and the Falcons just happened to be the latest obstacle standing in their way.
“I believe right now, it’s our moment, as Panthers,” Newton said. “We try to seize it as much as possible.”
He did his part by running the length of Bank of America Stadium after the game, slapping hands with fans along the way. He had a lot to celebrate after a 38-0 win, good for his fifth win in his past six games against the Falcons.
Newton aired out a pair of long touchdown passes to Ted Ginn Jr. of 74 yards and 46 yards, before the Falcons had their third first down. He rolled up 265 yards passing on 15 of 21 completions and passed for three touchdowns without an interception. Then he spent the fourth quarter with a towel over his head while backup Derek Anderson finished off the win that guarantees the Panthers a first-round bye in the playoffs.
“Ted is getting confidence,” Newton said. “(Offensive coordinator Mike) Shula is getting confidence. This offense is getting confidence, and I’m getting confidence. When you’ve got a team like that that’s peaking, you really don’t look for anybody to make plays, you start making plays. And you saw it out there today.”
Newton set the tone by hitting tight end Greg Olsen twice on the Panthers’ opening possession to drive into Falcons territory. Then Newton dodged a point-blank sack attempt by tackle Grady Jarrett, threw the ball away once he got outside the tackles, and reaped the rewards of a late hit by O’Brien Schofield. Two plays later tailback Jonathan Stewart leapt to a 1-yard touchdown.
On the Panthers’ second possession, Newton hit Ginn Jr. down the left sideline for a 74-yard touchdown, despite cornerback Robert Alford’s attempt to grab his shoulder pad. That was the first of three penalties whistled against the Falcons’ secondary that the Panthers declined because their receivers held onto the ball anyway.
After his two long strikes to Ginn, Newton showed his precision in short gains too, zipping a couple of low line drives into receivers in tight coverage, including one to backup tight end Ed Dickson for a 4-yard touchdown. That score put the Falcons up 28-0 without the benefit of a turnover.
“He’s really developed into the type of quarterback that we were hoping to have,” Panthers coach Ron Rivera said. “He’s got a great feel for things, and his reads and his decision-making has been really good this year. I really like his confidence throwing the ball across the middle with his guys.”
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