Cam Newton wouldn’t trade his 2015 MVP award for a Super Bowl ring. For some, it would be an easy choice to simply swap their MVP honors for the ultimate NFL honor. However, for Newton, “individual success” came over anything else. For many, it was a shock to hear him say that.
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But Shannon Sharpe and Chad Ochocinco Johnson were very understanding. While Johnson seemed to respect Newton’s autonomy and understood the prestige that comes with both of the awards, Sharpe struggled with the matter.
“Everybody is different… I think Cam wouldn’t want to give it up because it’s an individual accomplishment that he was able to achieve… You can’t say his preference on what he would do is wrong or what he would want is wrong.”
Having won three Super Bowls himself, the eight-time pro bowler was seemingly torn over the idea of potentially missing out on one of those championships. After burying his face into his hands and taking a long pause to reflect, he rebutted
“I get what he is saying. Everybody doesn’t view it the same.” Eventually, Sharpe chose to reframe the conversation by offering an alternative scenario.
“People ask me “Would you give up your hall of fame ring to win a Super Bowl?” I don’t have to make that choice because I have both, but some people don’t have both. Some people got in the hall of fame… some people won a Super Bowl… the MVP is different. Because the MVP is about one season.”
Sharpe again hid his face behind his hands before exclaiming “That’s hard!” He then went on to note that the greatest quarterback of all time, Tom Brady, was willing to give up one if not two Super Bowls in exchange for a perfect season.
Ultimately, the value of each award is in the eye of the beholder. A player who has never been to the playoffs despite being named to multiple Pro Bowls may favor a Lombardi trophy over their personal achievements. Likewise, a quarterback who has won multiple Super Bowls, may not value them as much as another accolade.
To Sharpe’s credit, he did come to Newton’s defense by highlighting that the situation was a catch-22 for him.
“Cam is never going to be right, because they are never going to let Cam live down that he didn’t jump on that fumble… Even if he said… “I would give up my MVP trophy to win a Super Bowl” everybody is going to say, “Why didn’t you jump on that fumble to show us?” you see?”
“Can’t win for losing,” Johnson added, suggesting that there’s no real point in having these hypothetical discussions. While Newton’s comments may have rubbed some the wrong way, others have appreciated the fact that he took pride in his personal accomplishments. When dealing with matters of personal preference, it’s always important to remember that one man’s trash is another man’s treasure, even if that trash happens to be a Super Bowl championship.
