Why is Russell Wilson a better quarterback than Cam Newton? - Seattle Times

[teeray]

I was going to point to that in my post but it didn't really flow with my whole agenda.

 

It's a pretty well known fact that Wilson is way better outside the pocket than inside the pocket. 

 

He has a terrible sense of pressure (or even phantom pressure) and often leaves the pocket way to soon, but he gets away with it because he can throw on the run.

 

He's also not that great against the zone.

 

The real key to stopping him is having the corner's play off the wide receivers (Wilson is deadly in play action), play a zone scheme on the back end (Wilson struggles against the zone) use a spy on Wilson (this keeps him from taking off if there's nothing available), getting pressure up the middle, and playing contain on the ends (keep him in the pocket).

 

That's how you expose Russell Wilson.

 

Yep.  I wasn't saying it as a bad thing either.  He is possibly the best in the NFL when scrambling and improvising.  But he is about as far away from a pocket passer as there is.  Cam is probably more of a true pocket passer than Wilson, in terms of standing and throwing from the actual pocket

[teeray]

Yeah, I don't see how someone reads it and doesn't see that he is saying Wilson is better in addition to their defined attitudes

[Cary Kollins]

He's clearly not as the title is a rhetorical question. In fact, look at the text below the title.

 

"Russell Wilson and Cam Newton, who meet Saturday in the NFC Divisional playoffs, are easy to contrast. But some of the success Wilson has enjoyed comes from the playoff-ready Seahawks team he plays for."

 

This screams rhetorical question.

 

Wilson isnt' better because of A & B (even though A&B are true), he's better because of C.

 

In fact, if you dive deeper into the article, the author explicitly says that Luck and Wilson are the premier quarterbacks of the young generation.

 

 

Not to mention that this is a Seattle Times article, why in the hell would he try to make a point to say that Wilson is not clearly better than Newton?

 

Oh, and then he says this... (back to the even though A&B are true, I believe it because of C).

 

 

I mean my heavens, do I need to just read the article for you?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've said all I have to say in this thread.

[Khaki Lackey]

Really?!?! I mean, I have no problem saying that Russell is better overall QB than Cam at this stage

Based on what, exactly?

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

 

 

 

I've said all I have to say in this thread.

 

Learn to read my friend..

 

The author even specifically makes his intentions known in the conclusion, you know... the thing where you restate your main point (thesis).

 

In the young quarterback derby, Wilson is ahead of Newton. But it’s not just because Wilson is a perfect study, and Newton is flawed and freewheeling.

 

I'm not trying to be a dick but it's not rocket science. It's simple journalism and in journalism you appeal to to your audience. I would say that based on the author's whereabouts, his audience is Seattle Seahawks fans. If this was a satirical piece of journalism you'd have an argument. However, due to the fact that it's just your simple analytic-al sports journalism, I'm 100% sure that you are reading to much into it and not actually reading the words on the paper.

[raleigh-panther]

I am so sick of defending Cam Newton.

 

He is the square peg in the round hole of quarterbacks.  He does with his legs what other QBs do from the pocket with their arms, is that so bad?

 

The only issue is the hits will take their pre-ponderance on his time in the league.

 

For once, just once, in 2014 version of the playoffs, I need him to do what he did inthe  2013  season against NO and NE, shock the world and beat the teams that it is said can't be beaten.

 

I'm also sick to bloody death of Russell Wilson being treated like Jesus.  No one but Jesus is that perfect.  Not on this earth.

[d-dave]

Click Bait title there...

 

What it comes down to is the teams different approach.  Frankly, the offensive staff for the Seahawks >>>> than the Panthers. Wilson came out of college with an NFL ready mind.  Cam not at all.  In college Cam dominated because he was the best athlete on the field by a mile.  Wilson wasn't.  He's got good wheels, but with his height, he's had to learn more about the passing game than Cam ever had.  So yes, Wilson is a head of Cam due what what he's had to learn, and the team that picked him up.

 

Cam entered as the savior for a team in need of hope.  Wilson was a 3rd round pick who was expected to develop but not play from the get go.  Two different paths have lead to different points of development.  When these guys are in their 30s, it will be interesting to see how their careers have gone.  Cam has more physical talent, but Wilson has had to develop his mental side of the game much faster.

 

Is it fair to compare the guys?  Why not, everyone has done with Brady and Manning their entire careers.  This is going to be something that Wilson and Cam will share and develop over their careers.  This will be fun (hopefully) for the next decade or so.  I hope they can stay healthy, the teams stay competitive around them, and the NFL sees this as the premiere QB battle.

 

Or not.  Wilson > Newton, Newton > Wilson, blah blah blah.

[teeray]

Based on what, exactly?

 

Didn't say I necessarily agreed, just said I don't have a problem with people saying that.  Wilson, like Cam, is also great scrambler but is more consistently accurate than Cam right now. 

 

But he also has a better team surrounding him and can't do the same things Cam can do with his size.  They are both great young QBs but I can see why some may think WIlson is better at this stage.  I still think Cam has the higher ceiling and eventually will be better than the other young QBs in time

[Ivan The Awesome]

I'm really tired of this picture that the media paints of Cam.

For starters, Russell Wilson is labeled as mature and Cam is labeled as a diva. The last time I checked, the Seahawks are the one's that had a divided locker room this year (which Wilson was at the center of), not the Panthers. But hey, let's paint a picture of Cam that displays him as a player that wastes his time and has had everything handed to him.

Wait a minute though, didn't Cam get arrested in college, turn his life around, win two national titles (JUCO/NCAA), get accused of committing an NCAA violation, get drafted first overall, set tons of records, have a sub par 2nd season, lead his team the playoffs the next year, injure his ankle, break his ribs, get in a serious car wreck....

And is now playing at an elite level with the city of

Charlotte in his corner (all while being somewhat injured).

The man has faced more adversity in 25 years than some will in their entire life (most likely this journalist) and on top that the media has decided to single handily put his life under a microscope and criticize him for every little thing (even the way he dresses). After re-reading what I just wrote, that doesn't sound like a spoiled kid to me. That sounds like a fighter.

Secondly, Cam is labeled as erratic, crazy, and a time waster. Well that's news to me. I didn't realize that spending time conducting 7v7's for local HS kids, buying kids Christmas gifts, buying families Turkey's on Thanksgiving, or working at soup kitchens were tendencies of a crazy, time wasting quarterback. Oh and let's not forget, he also finds time to be a franchise quarterback.

It's time for the media to realize that Cam's persona isn't a slight at them, their organization, or whatever team they cover.

His first down celebration, his superman pose, his contagious smile, his funny interview cliches, his impersonation of MJ (towel over the head).... it's not for the media.

It's for the fans of the Carolina Panthers and the city of Charlotte and I'll be damned if some asshole is going to influence my opinion on Mr. Newton due to a piss poor article like the one I just read.

As for Wilson being better than Cam (as the article suggests), we'll see come Saturday evening.

Reading this in an angry black woman's voice in my head made it feel more fierce.

[stirs]

Okay, yes, we are Panther fans.

 

But from a football perspective, if a journalist or reporter sees a QB, who after 4 years in the league, is still having trouble with his mechanics and admits it on national TV, then they think he should have overcome them by now and report various reasons for it.

 

You don't like it, but understand it.

[CarolinaPanthers8789]

Reading this in an angry black woman's voice in my head made it feel more fierce.

 

I was on the toilet with diarrhea while typing it so I was pretty angry myself.

[Sean Payton's Vicodin]

I'm still waiting for that "next step up" from Cam. Not that his shitass coaches like Dorsey and Shula are doing him many favors, but he still does really dumb Aaron Brooks type poo (that one interception in the Browns game for instance).

 

Wilson has a lot more patience than Cam, and has a better cast around him (though Seattle's receivers are terrible).

[Ricky Spanish]

It's clearly not me lol. Everyone except the two of you have come to same conclusion as I have.

 

It's really quite simple. The author is saying that you can't say that Wilson is better based on size and attitude "even though it's easy to" (paraphrasing), but you can say he is better based on the scenario that Wilson is in. The title is also a rhetorical question. He's telling us why Wilson is better not asking why Wilson is better.

 

The author gives you two premises and beliefs and basically says that it's easy to simply stop and say Wilson is better because of this. However, that wouldn't be giving Wilson (or Cam for that matter) enough credit. He goes on to say that what truly makes Wilson better is the scenario that he's in.

 

However, just because he is saying that Wilson isn't better than Cam based on attitude alone does not mean that he doesn't believe the two premises that he wrote. In fact, he even says that it's easy to simply say that Wilson is better than Newton based on attitude alone but then he begins to dive deeper and tries to back it up with a football basis.

 

Ah, I get what you're saying now.

 

I agree with your overall conclusion, but I think you are projecting intent when you say that the two premises he stated are the ones he believes. The way I read it was "The media has said this is the narrative between Cam v. Wilson, but that isn't the whole story" not "The media, including myself, believe this is the narrative between Cam v. Wilson, but that isn't the whole story, here's other reasons why they are right"

 

I CAN see how you could get to that place though. I just don't see the article as condescending towards Cam as you did. 

[Davidson Deac II]

Yeah, you are right.  It didn't get any better

 

I thought it did.  Basically seemed to be saying that whatever Cam's problems are, they are more the fault of the way we are using him than of any flaws in Cam himself.  That is a sentiment a lot of Panther fans have stated over the years.

 

 

Newton is more of the classic young franchise quarterback. The Panthers have asked too much of him at times, which has exposed his flaws. When they have simplified their approach — like they did late this season and all of 2013, when the team went 12-4 — Newton has played better, and the team has thrived.

I am not sure I agree, but there are certainly huddle members who have said similar things about Newton.