Cameron Jerrell Newton is the quarterback of the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. On Sunday, February 7 he will lead his team against the Denver Broncos in the 50^th Super Bowl played in Santa Clara, California. This will be Cam’s first Super Bowl; the Panthers are currently favored by the boys in Las Vegas.

Cam is an amazing athlete. At 6’5” and 250 pounds he is a powerful and formidable man, especially for a quarterback. When sacking Cam you don’t throw him to the ground; you hang on for dear life until he tumbles down. Newton has developed into a good pocket passer, but has the mobility to operate out of the pocket and can kill you when he decides to keep the ball and run. There are more accurate passers in the NFL but Cam is coming along and developing nicely in this regard.

Newton was a rascal in college and controversy remains regarding his collegiate recruitment but by all accounts he is a model NFL player. He is adored by his fans in Carolina, yet he is a polarizing figure for many gridiron fans. As a fan you either love the guy or dislike him immensely, not because of his football expertise but because of his celebratory behavior.

The consummate entertainer, when the Panthers score a touchdown Cam will go to the sidelines and raise his arms to the fans as if her were conducting an orchestra. His smile is contagious but can be irritating to opposing fans. He skips down the sideline like a little kid at times. He dances when he scores a touchdown. Cam smiles nearly all the time even when he is getting sacked. Newton does not taunt his opponents; instead he celebrates his success. When I talk to football fans I find them really divided. Many of them think he is a glory-hog that celebrates “over the top” but others really like the guy.

While I had a bit of difficulty with his celebration methods at first, I’ve come to the conclusion that Cam Newton not only genuinely likes to play football but he plays it with joy! He reminds me a lot of the exuberance of Dennis Rodman when he played for the Bulls.  Rodman just loved the game and couldn’t hide his enthusiasm. Cam is a lot like that. He’s just like a little kid playing Pop Warner football. There is an innocence in his fervor.

Cam is not your soft spoken Brady, Rogers, Manning type of quarterback of the past; he is the quarterback of the future. Keep on smiling, Cam. I’m a fan!