Cam Newton, who spent the majority of his 11-year NFL career with the Carolina Panthers, is not backing down from his recent criticism of his former teammates.
Newton was the first overall selection in the 2011 NFL Draft and said when he arrived in Carolina he entered a locker room of “losers.”
The 2015 NFL MVP acknowledged his remarks were “aggressive,” but he remained steadfast in his position that they were “true.”
“When did we become so sensitive,” the former NFL star said this week during the “4th&1 with Cam Newton” podcast. “When did we become so sensitive to really speaking what the reality is? A locker room full of losers? Aggressive, but it’s true.”
The three-time Pro Bowl quarterback made the initial comments during an interview with Colorado football star Travis Hunter.
Newton told Hunter he has “no way of impacting the game the way a quarterback does.”
“I went into a locker room of losers,” Newton said. “Just honest. Guys didn’t know how to win, guys didn’t know how to prepare. They didn’t take themselves serious to realize we was 2-14. There was a lot of 2-14 in the mentality of those guys.”
Hunter, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, is projected to be one of the first players selected in April’s draft. Newton was offering Hunter some insight into the pressure the two-way player could face if he becomes this year’s No. 1 pick.
One of Newton’s former teammates, Steve Smith, took exception to the quarterback’s comments.
“53 man locker room – 1 = 52 losers. Wow… breaking news to 89,” Smith wrote on X with an angry emoji.
A few hours later, Smith posted, “I’ve watched & listened from a far as U @CameronNewton talk about @Panthers! None of us are perfect. Yes We were 2-14 before you blessed us w ur presence. The way you have talked about @panthers lately I’m very disappointed. I wish u nothing but the very best. I’m done!!!”
Smith played for the Panthers from 2001-13 and is the most productive receiver to wear a Panthers uniform. He is also a finalist for the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Newton said he has “no quarrel” with Smith and understands why he had an issue with the remarks. Newton did clarify that he was referencing the Panthers’ performance as a whole and not individual players when he made the original comments.
“I’m not specifically talking about those guys,” Newton said. “I’m talking about the culture that was there prior to me coming into the locker room. And it was a losers’ mentality.”
Newton said the Panthers still had it his first two seasons when they went 6-10 and 7-9.
Things started to come together in 2013, when Carolina went 12-4 before losing to the San Francisco 49ers in the playoffs. The 2015 team went 15-1 and earned a spot in the Super Bowl. Carolina came up short in that game, losing 24-10 to the Denver Broncos.
“Is it me saying that, ‘Oh when I came, I made everything (better)?’” he said. “No. I never said that. What I said was, ‘If you’re getting drafted No. 1, you’re going to a bad football team.’ That’s facts. And that’s the point that I was trying to tell Travis Hunter.
“You see what I’m saying? For me, everybody is so taken aback, like, ‘Oh, Cam said this.’ Bro, it’s the truth. It’s the truth.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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