Ex-Patriots QB Cam Newton Wouldn’t Give Up MVP Crown For Championship

Former New England Patriots and Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton never won a Super Bowl during his NFL career.

The retired signal-caller took the Panthers to the big dance once at the end of the 2015 season, but they lost to the Denver Broncos. That was the same season Newton won the league’s MVP award.

Stephen A. Smith asked Newton on ESPN’s “First Take” if he would “give back his league MVP for a Super Bowl Championship,” and the latter simply replied, “No.”

Noting the look of shock on Smith’s face, Newton breaks down his reason for wanting to keep his MVP.

“I’ll ask you this question: what’s more important, impact or championships?” Newton asked. “… Everybody’s not going to be Michael Jordan. Everybody’s not going to be Patrick Mahomes. Everybody’s not going to be these individuals who have the luxury of saying, ‘Hey, I not only dominated this sport, but I also have championships to back it.’

“Let me remind you, Brad Johnson won a Super Bowl. Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl. Respectfully, Nick Foles won a Super Bowl. So, yes when you look at those guys, and you say, ‘What’s most important? Would you have preferred to have a Super Bowl?’ I think that’s the humble approach.”

Newton continued: “If we are being honest, the impact of holding yourself accountable to say everything has a responsibility to do. You can say as an MVP winner or All-American, you held yourself or you held your end of the bargain down. That’s what it comes down to.”

The three-time Pro Bowler added he knows his response is not what Smith expected to hear.

“I know that’s not a popular pick,” Newton said. “I’m not trying to be popularized. My take is I’m taking the individual success because I did my job. Football is not about one guy trying to do 11 jobs; it’s 11 guys doing one job.”