Shining Bright — On and Off the Field

Cam Dances, Celebrates His Way to Becoming MVP, International Star

By Jonathan Jones

Here's how big Cam Newton has become:

In her final year as first lady of the United States, Michelle Obama has enlisted Newton to help her Partnership for a Healthier America, a drive to help kids make healthier choices.

The smile, the dance, the celebrations ... Newton is internationally known, and football sometimes almost seems inconsequential.

Charlotte has never seen an active player's star shine as brightly as Newton.

His impact came before he chose to wear No. 1 for the Carolina Panthers — a decision he made when his college number, 2, was already taken by Panthers quarterback Jimmy Clausen, and one he stayed with in 2012 when the number became available.

During his Heisman run at Auburn, Newton made famous the Superman pose that is now synonymous with him. Newton puts both hands to his chest and acts as if he's ripping open his button-up shirt to reveal the 'S' underneath.

Five years into the league, Newton continues to do it for each rushing touchdown — all 45 in the regular season and playoffs. And players at all levels imitate him.

Opponents mock Newton with the Superman pose after getting a sack or forcing a fumble against Newton. High school and college players have been doing it for years in admiration of Newton.

But Newton needed some help early on in developing the celebration.

"He was talking about it and doing it with one hand," Chad Froechtenicht, Newton's teammate at Blinn Junior College, said in an interview in 2015. "I said, 'Cam, Superman does it with two hands. You've got to rip it off. You've got to use two hands.' I corrected him, and then it just started from there."

Over the years, Newton has developed quite the cadre of sponsors. His time at Auburn, an Under Armour school, made his deal with the apparel giant an obvious one. Newton has also picked up deals with Gatorade, Beats by Dre, GMC, Dannon and Belk, with which he has his own clothing line.

Unique isn't a strong enough word to describe Newton's fashion style. When his MADE line launched in 2013, Newton seemed to dress more traditionally.

Over time that style morphed into more high-fashion — the kind of look you see on New York runways.

The man-pris pants, loafers with spikes, big Arby's-looking hats, foxtails attached to his belt loop. Newton is one-of-one when it comes to fashion.

His Nickelodeon show, "All in with Cam Newton," debuted in the summer of 2016. The 30-episode series matched kids with a mentor who helped the children follow their dreams. Newton's empire is expanding to children's television programming, where he's an executive producer.

Newton's play on the field is as good as it's ever been as evidenced by his NFL MVP award. He received 48 of a possible 50 votes for the league's ultimate individual title.

The blend of his 6-foot-5, 265-pound frame with his speed, physicality, arm strength and smarts is something rarely seen. It had been more than 20 years since a dual-threat quarterback won the league's MVP award (Steve Young, in 1994) before Newton took it home.

His rise in popularity is reflected in what fans are consuming.

From March 2013 until March 2014, Newton's NFL officially licensed merchandise — which includes jerseys, shirts and toys — ranked him as the 27th highest-selling player in the league. The following year he moved to 24th.

In 2015, he ranked seventh.

Newton's dancing has become one of the most popular, and divisive, aspects of today's NFL.

It's more than the Superman pose, the 1,000 megawatt smile or his traditional handing the touchdown football to little kids. Newton breaks out the latest dance craze — commonly from the hip-hop community — and incorporates that into his celebrations.

The one that caught on was the dab.

The beauty and genius behind the dab is that it's so easy to replicate. Someone with little to no rhythm can tuck their head into their arm and make a presentable dab.

Newton began doing it after rushing for first downs early in the 2015 season, but it didn't become a phenomenon until, after a game in Nashville against the Tennessee Titans, a Tennessee mom couldn't figure out what to tell her daughter about Newton's dancing.

The dab, which Newton adopted from the rap trio Migos, spread quickly. European soccer players were doing it. Hockey players were, too. Young boys in the stands at basketball games would dab when the in-house camera put them on the video board.

Coaches and teammates say it's just Cam being Cam.

"You're looking at a man who's not afraid to be himself," comedian Kevin Hart said in 2015, when he and Ice Cube were with Newton in Charlotte promoting a film.

"I think what's great about Cam is that personality is what the sport needs. That flair. That spark. That ultimate level of swagger. I think so many people try to create personas and create characteristic traits that they think the world wants to see. Ultimately the world just wants to see you be you.

"And regardless of your color, race, shape or size, you can fit in as long as you're yourself because people know what they're getting into. People know what they're getting with this guy and he's having fun doing it. I'm loving watching it."

So is Charlotte.

Panthers Pin Hopes on Cam Newton

QB Says His Top Priority 'Is to Get with This Organization and Get Going.'

By Scott Fowler | April 29, 2011

The Carolina Panthers bet the house on Cam Newton, making him the No.1 overall pick in the NFL draft. The Panthers took possibly the biggest risk in franchise history by drafting Newton, hoping that he will lead them to big rewards as he did for Auburn in college. In one spectacular season, the quarterback won both a national championship and the Heisman Trophy while accounting for 50 total touchdowns.

The Panthers made their No.1 selection immediately Thursday night, within 10 seconds of the announcement that they were on the 10-minute "clock" teams get to make first-round picks. Newton quickly pulled on a Panthers hat that clashed with his pink tie, gave high-fives to his family and walked onstage to hold up a No.1 Panthers jersey alongside NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

The loudspeakers blared "Cat Scratch Fever" as Newton gazed around Radio City Music Hall, soaking it all in with a dazzling smile that will become very familiar to Panthers fans. His father and his two brothers quickly put on Panthers' hats, too. Newton said later in a post-draft...