How Cam Newton Used to Trick Defenses With His Unusual Cadence

Many NFL fans remember how unstoppable Cam Newton was in his prime with the Carolina Panthers. He was a massive quarterback who would regularly run through defenders like a fullback. Not to mention, he could throw the pigskin with elite power and precise accuracy for years. But many may forget another part of his game that he mastered in his prime: his cadence.

What is a quarterback cadence, you ask? It’s a verbal, sometimes non-verbal, sequence that a quarterback uses to signal that a play is starting. Often, the sequence includes code words like “White 80” or “Blue 42”. 

In his prime, Newton was so unstoppable that even his cadence could get defenses off their natural rhythm. This was because it was unusually long and drawn out. Cam would sometimes stand at the Panthers‘ line for what felt like an eternity. 

“White eightyyyyyyyyyyyyy. White 80, hut!” Newton would say.

As mentioned, this long cadence would throw defenses off rhythm. Newton could even get them to jump offside or commit encroachment penalties as they tried to anticipate when he would snap the ball. He used their aggressiveness against them, forcing the defense to wait until they knew he was ready to go.

Who remembers Cam Newton’s super long cadence? @CameronNewton | @Panthers pic.twitter.com/yOEigy6d3g

— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) October 3, 2025

However, Newton’s cadence wasn’t just confusing for opposing teams. His own teammates often said it threw them off as well. They had to deal not only with Cam’s eccentric personality but also with his unusual cadence.

“I hated it,” a former Carolina Panthers offensive lineman said. “We made fun of it in the locker room because it sucked. And the O-Line for the Bucs used to be like, ‘Man, how do you deal with that?’ I just said, ‘I don’t know, man. Whatever.’ Not only is Cam who he is, I gotta deal with his stupid hard count too.”

It sounds like the offensive line for the Panthers had their hands full. Not only would Newton get defenses to jump prematurely, but he’d also get his own team to false start time and time again. When everyone was on the same page, though, it was tough to tell when the ball was going to be snapped, and it worked to perfection. 

All in all, it’s just a fun little tidbit that we revisited from Newton’s career. He was such a unique player and personality; it only makes sense that he had a unique quarterback cadence as well. And he was proud of it, too.

Cam can be seen during the clip gushing over himself and his “cadence game” to one of his coaches. Clearly, it was something he worked on a ton, and he wanted people to know he was the best at it.