Regular Reader wrote:
FavreFan wrote:
I hardly ever hear people talk about Cam's intelligence or lack there of. I doubt if he was black he would be getting treated much differently. He would probably have a few less apologists. He's already seen as an underachieving bad teammate with attitude problems. I doubt there'd be much to add to the narrative if his skin color changed.
Hub Arkush (& others) constantly talk about Newton's lack of "feel" or "understanding"
for playing quarterback. He/they constantly claim that many insiders grumble that he doesn't do the extra work that "good/great" QBs do, but never seemingly can cite their impeccable sources backing up that position (but then crucify the unnamed Jets who roast the weekly target of the week in that franchise).
I think the politically correct version is to now describe just how little of a "pocket passer" Newton is, because God knows the only "real" QBs are pocket passers the overwhelming majority of the time. I won't even get into how eager many are to negatively describe his body language or dissect the specific wording of his responses in press conferences. (Despite the amazing similarities in his game & "statements" and those of say Steve Young or Elway in their second years)
Of course the fallback is to call him a poor leader. Despite his youth, possibly poor coaching and odd play selection...
But in fairness, Newton is getting the kid glove treatment now compared to what he would have gotten 15-20 years ago. So I guess there's that "win".
Hub is one of the most mocked media members on this site, and in general from what I can tell. I dont really listen to anything he has to say, so I'll trust you're right on that. I think anyone, including the Jets players, who won't put their name behind a criticism is a coward.
Cam does get destroyed for his body language and press sound bites, just like Jay Cutler does. Not sure if Cam also gets criticized for not saying hi to people when entering the stadium.
I dont mind people calling him a poor leader. He's earned that so far. He's earned a lot of the criticism he's gotten so far. Mainly I hear him criticized for not being a leader, body language, and petty stuff like calling a female reporter sweetheart. I dont really hear too many people say he lacks understanding of the QB position, and I'd agree that would probably be code for he's not smart enough to play QB. Overall, I dont feel Cam gets criticized significantly more than what is warranted. Same with Cutler.