Cam Newton Just Cares About Winning, Not His Passing Statistics
BOSTON (CBS) -- The Patriots absolutely destroyed the Chargers to the tune of 45-0 on Sunday to get back to .500 on the season. It was a textbook demolition of an inferior team, with New England executing in all three phases of the game.
But some are still finding ways to complain about the lopsided victory, and it all starts with Cam Newton as a passer. The quarterback had just 69 yards through the air in the win, completing nine of the 18 passes he was asked to throw. Newton has just 153 passing yards over his last two games, with one touchdown and two interceptions.
The Patriots have won both of those games though, and that is all that matters to Newton. The quarterback said Tuesday that he feels comfortable throwing the ball if that's what New England's game plan calls for, but folks need to stop getting so fixated on his personal statistics.
"For me personally, I've played this game long enough to have played and had games with 400 yards and lost, and I've also had a lot of yards and won. I've also had like this last game, throwing for 69 yards and won. I've had 100 yards, 120 yards and lost. I don't necessarily get fixated on that statistic. I'm really all about winning," Newton said Tuesday morning during his radio interview on WEEI. "Were there passes I wish I had back? Absolutely. But when you're throwing the ball efficiently or the workload is not as strenuous as it is, we've got a winning formula: Running the ball well.
"Whatever I'm asked to do, I'm all for it. You wont hear me complaining about winning," he added. "If it comes to it, I'll be readily available to throw the football."
And though he isn't putting up big numbers through the air, Newton is still making good things happen for the Patriots with his legs. He ran for two more touchdowns against the Chargers, giving him 11 on the season, picking up 48 yards on his 14 carries. That includes a key fourth-and-2 conversion deep in L.A. territory on New England's first possession, leading to his first touchdown run of the day.
"A lot of times, the appreciation of how I play the game is not the sexiest thing," Newton admitted. "People are always comparing quarterbacks to quarterbacks, which is the right thing to do. But the style is different. Comparing me to Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady, gunslingers who throw a lot of yards – that's a way to win. But the way this team has offered itself to win has been different. You can negate it or downplay that I'm only doing this and not doing that, but when your number is called and you need to get a first down on fourth-and-2, it is what it is. You have to make sure when your number is called, you're ready. However the game needs to be won, I'm willing to do it."
Newton's threat to take off with the ball, along with some stellar offensive line play, has opened the floodgates for New England's other runners. The Patriots had 168 yards on the ground against the Chargers, and rank third in the NFL with 150.9 rushing yards per game.
Running the football has been a winning formula for the Patriots all season. Newton finds the criticism following a blowout win a bit puzzling.
"When you win 45-0, what more can you do? What, do you want me to substitute the score for personal benefit? Something is confusing about that," he said. "It's not sexy to see a QB throw for 69 yards, but what we did do as an offense is we had situational football that we hit home on. Scoring right before the half. Getting a two-for-one with the blocked field goal. Scoring to open the game up, and being the first team to score in the second half. We hit on all of those. We were efficient on third down and fourth down, and that's what, going into the game, you want and need to do."
The Patriots improved to 6-6 with Sunday's win over the Chargers, and look to win their third straight when they square off against the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday night.