Ex-Patriots QB wouldn’t trade MVP award for Super Bowl

During an 11-year NFL career, Cam Newton stocked his trophy case thanks to plenty of individual accomplishments.

The No. 1 overall pick in 2011 draft lived up to the hype quickly, winning Offensive Rookie of the Year in Carolina. Newton was voted to three career Pro Bowls, and in 2015, was awarded MVP, Offensive Player of the Year, and named the First Team All-Pro quarterback.

On ESPN’s First Take, Newton was asked whether he’d trade his MVP Award for a Super Bowl ring.

“No,” Newton replied bluntly.

The quarterback only made it to one Super Bowl, a 24-10 loss to Peyton Manning’s Denver Broncos that ended the award-filled 2015 season. Newton garnered quite a bit of criticism for not diving on a fourth-quarter fumble in that game.

“What’s more important, impact or championships?” Newton reasoned. “You look at a guy like Allen Iverson… Everybody is not going to be Michael Jordan. Everybody is not going to be Patrick Mahomes. Everybody is not going to be these individuals who have the luxury of saying, ‘Hey, I not only dominated this sport but I also have championships to back it.’

“Let me remind you: Brad Johnson won a Super Bowl. Trent Dilfer won a Super Bowl. Respectfully, Nick Foles won a Super Bowl.”

Newton said personal awards reflected personal accountability, reasoning that an MVP award shows that a player did what they were asked at the highest level.

“You can say as an MVP award winner or an All-American, you held your end of the bargain down. That’s what it really comes down to for me. I know that’s not the popular pick… My take is I’m taking individual success because I did my job.”

Newton, who spent the 2020 season and summer of 2021 with the Patriots, ended his answer with “famous words of our coach (Bill) Belichick: Just do your job.”

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