“I Did My Job”: Cam Newton Explains Why He Would Not Trade His MVP Award for a Super Bowl

Cam Newton saw the heights of success early in his career. He won Rookie of the Year in his debut season and was an All-Pro. Then at age 26, he won an MVP award, while leading the Panthers to a 15-1 record and a Super Bowl appearance. He couldn’t, however, win the big game — something he doesn’t want to change, it seems. Despite the Super Bowl being considered the benchmark for elite QBs, Newton says he wouldn’t trade the MVP award he won for a Super Bowl ring.

When asked by Stephen A. Smith if he would trade his MVP for a Super Bowl win on the latest episode of First Take, Newton responded with a firm “No.” And as expected, this answer took everyone on the panel by surprise.

Newton believes individual “impact” is more important than championships. Even if that means not everyone can reach the level of Michael Jordan or Patrick Mahomes, Newton says it’s okay.

“What’s more important impact or championships? Everybody is not going to be Michael Jordan or Patrick Mahomes. Not everyone is going to have the luxury to say they dominated a sport and have championships to back it.”

It’s a surprising response from a former athlete, but not as surprising if you know Cam’s personality. He’s very defensive over the career he had and his MVP is all he has to stand on. He also won the Heisman trophy in college, but the NFL MVP is much more illustrious.

Most athletes would’ve taken the humble approach to the question and just said “Yes.” But Newton is a straight shooter who isn’t afraid to say how he feels. And he went on to make good points too, even naming a few forgettable QBs who never won an MVP, but have Super Bowl rings.

“Let me remind you, Brad Johnson won a Super Bowl. Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl. Respectfully, Nick Foles won a Super Bowl… My take is that I’m taking 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.”

The question Cam poses is a good one for sports fans to think about. Is impact or championships more important? Allen Iverson is a great case to study. Someone like Dan Marino is also another good name to bring up. We oftentimes stress over championships while forgetting that some of the most impactful athletes ever didn’t win one. Winning it all is hard. It may be the standard by which elite QBs are judged, but it’s also sometimes not.

Fans, of course, were all over Newton in the comments. It seems as though the majority didn’t like how self-centered he sounded in his response. So much so a few even called him out for an iconic photo of him in his only ever Super Bowl appearance that saw him shying away from a fumble recovery. Others called out his cocky persona.

Although, one fan sympathized with Newton, agreeing 100% and pointing out that there are plenty of players with rings who we don’t remember.

Sometimes we need to accept that championships aren’t everything. As Newton says, the game isn’t about one guy doing 11 different jobs. It’s about every player on the team putting their heads down and locking in together. Quarterbacks often take the blame for wins and losses, but most of the time, it’s due to factors beyond their control.

There’s more to a win or loss than the quarterback’s performance. Sometimes, there isn’t, and they are the difference. But more often than not, that’s not the case.

Offensive line work and defense usually decide the outcomes of games and seasons. They’re the overlooked parts of the game that nobody wants to talk about, but they’re crucial to a team’s success. It’s why some forgettable names end up with Super Bowls, like Johnson, Dilfer, and Foles. Sometimes a team just needs its quarterback to not mess up, rather than be a superhero like Newton was.