SAN JOSE, Calif. — If you want to get on Cam Newton because he dances, go right ahead. But his Panthers teammates will fight you every step of the way — right after they finish displaying their own fancy footwork.
No one knows if the Panthers will finish what they started and carry the surge of momentum generated from a 17-1 record into Super Bowl 50. No one can be sure they can create a tsunami capable of washing away Peyton Manning and the Broncos. No one can be sure if this indeed is a changing of the guard, with Newton ascending and Manning exiting. But the Panthers certainly appear to be thoroughly enjoying everything there is about the lead-up to this game, following step-for-step the relaxed and effervescent attitude of their 26-year old quarterback.
“We’re having so much fun because we are having fun,’’ running back Jonathan Stewart said. “There’s no reason to go out there and not enjoy your job.’’
How much Newton enjoys his job has sparked a national discourse, but not among the Panthers. They see him dance and dab after touchdowns, and because he has accounted for 45 of them this season, that’s a whole lot of viral videos displaying on laptops far and near.
It is not for everyone, these high-octane celebrations that scream “Look at me,’’ but they are most definitely for the Panthers, who line up in support of Newton, with no caveats.
“They don’t understand the type of player he is,’’ Stewart said. “When you have something fresh, when you have something new, people are afraid of change and I don’t think they understand it.”
Newton is fresh and fairly new and wholly unrepentant. He knows his celebrations are watched, analyzed and critiqued. He does not know why they are so disliked.
“But I guess you’ll have to get used to it, because I don’t plan on changing,’’ he said.
Newton is loose, but not any more so than his teammates. The Panthers take their cues from their coach, Ron Rivera, who insists they remain true to themselves.
“He always tells us to be ourselves and to keep our personality,’’ defensive lineman Star Lotulelei said. “We’re not going to change just because it’s the Super Bowl. We’re going to approach it the same way we have all season and have some fun.”
Rivera does not have much to worry about there. Newton is the ringleader, but he has plenty of disciples when it comes to big and bold personalities who bask in their success by letting everyone around them know it.
“We’re going to save all the dancing for Sunday,’’ fullback Mike Tolbert said. “But if you look at it, we’ve been dancing for years, it’s nothing new. We just like to have a good time. This year is just another way to show that. We’ve always had a good time dancing and we’re not going to change that now because a few people don’t like it.”
What those who look disparagingly on Newton’s gyrations fail to recognize is the actions are not exclusively a solo act intended to please only him. Newton recognizes the Panthers draw confidence and excitement from his every movement on the field. They have no interest in seeing him cease, desist or chill out.
“His teammates love it,’’ receiver Jerricho Cotchery said. “I’ve been on enough teams where if guys made it completely about themselves and they’re constantly dancing and the guys didn’t like it, they would let him know.
“But obviously Cam is a guy that we all love in the locker room. We enjoy having him around. Guys enjoy being around him. We have plenty of guys on the team that are just like him that love dancing. [Safety] Tre Boston is probably the second most dancing dude on the team. He can’t dance as well as Cam or Mike Tolbert, but he’s going to dance any chance he gets. We have a lot of guys with that type of personality and we love everything about him.”
It is the biggest week of his life, and Newton is approaching it the only way he knows how.
“Half of me tries to be as professional as possible, but the human in me just wants to take it all in,’’ Newton said. “You know what I’m saying?
The Panthers know what he’s saying.