Cam Newton is imploring Lamar Jackson not to allow the media to tear him down.
After warning Anthony Richardson against giving critics ammunition, Newton is warning Jackson not to give into media narratives. He specifically called out those in the media who have not only never played the position but never played a down of football.
He’s done that before, not wanting to give credence to the people who haven’t played, seeking more athlete-laden perspectives like his own. He isn’t the first former athlete to feel that way, and he certainly won’t be the last.
But when it comes to Jackson, Newton is adamant that the narrative surrounding the Baltimore Ravens quarterback’s style of play needs to shift.
“And my whole thing with Lamar Jackson has been this: he is the greatest dual-threat quarterback to play this game, bar none,” said Newton. “You can do things on the football field, Lamar Jackson, that nobody has ever been able to do. That’s your skill; that’s not your deficit.”
Cam Newton PLEADS with Lamar Jackson and goes SCORCHED EARTH on the media
“He is the greatest dual-threat QB to play this game, bar none. You can do things on the football field that nobody has ever been able to do. That’s your skill, not your deficit” pic.twitter.com/pOO3bc1OM9
— Kevin Oestreicher (@koestreicher34) December 9, 2024
“Do not allow other people — and it’s easy for other people to critique a game that they didn’t even play,” Newton added. “Now, I’ll say that again: it’s easy for people to critique a game — and most of the time, they didn’t even play it. It’s for them to say it. ‘You can’t play the game of football like that.’ ‘You can’t play quarterback like that.’ Hey, asshole, you didn’t even play quarterback.
“But just because you got one of these [a microphone]; just because you got a platform; just because you got a Twitter account; just because you got a comment, you think you know about football. So, his mom can agree to this: Lamar, bro, be you, and do you. Because even though that you know that you have to get other people involved in the game, bro, you got something that a lot of people wish that they had — the uncanny ability to get the f*ck home at any time.
“You’re the only person, probably, in history that can be really be successful by just dropping back and being blind. And just saying, ‘You know what, one, two, three, four; OK, boom, let me scramble,’ and probably can be successful at it. That’s a skill. That’s not a deficit.”
In Newton’s mind, Jackson’s unique talents should be celebrated, not scrutinized.
Newton has been in his shoes, and now he’s encouraging Jackson to stand firm in his greatness.
And he doesn’t want the media to be responsible for shaping the Louisville product’s legacy.
