The Cam Newton and Race Thread!

[Sapper]

[RWatson43]

"It don't matter if you are black or white." Color has no bearing on this for me. Other may want to elude to race being the root cause. Yet I hope we do not draft him due to past play, combine, pro day, character issues off the field, and he seems more geared to produce revenue in endorsements than winning. I actually would love McNabb to be here. I see him a lot like the young Vick, strong arm, great running but not a pure pocket passer. Needs time to develop, just as Vick has done.

[rayzor]

i can't say i blame someone of some race to want a QB from that same race, esp since the QB is such a high profile person. i've been spoiled by having so many QBs from my race to play in the NFL, but beyond that, i see players at other positions increasingly not from the same race and i would like to see some more balance there (although not at the risk of talent). it's important to be able to identify with player from your favorite team.

as far as newton goes, i can identify with him to a certain extent not because of race, but because of a plethora of mistakes made when you first go to college and efforts made to go and grow beyond them instead of having them be representative of your whole life or dictate who you are going to be.

[Mr. Scot]

Were there many Panthers fans that didn't like Rodney Peete bc he was black?

Not really.

I was a mod on the official Panthers board, and the only time we had trouble with racist stuff was when we had an influx of Eagle fans making asses of themselves.

In all the discussion of quarterbacks on here, I've only ever seen one person say he didn't like black quarterbacks, and he was roundly chastised for it.

I've seen a thousand times more stupidity from people making unfounded racist accusations than I have actual racism.

People don't care what color the quarterback is as long as he wins games.

[blackcatgrowl]

I'm white and want Newton to be our pick. I do think race has played a role in a lot of the comparisons Cam's been getting (namely Jamarcus Russell) because, TBH, I don't see any other significant similarities.

I do see the Vince Young comparison as a little more valid, but even then, Newton is pretty far ahead of where Young was as a pure passer and I don't think has nearly the work ethic and mental issues that Young has.

This.

[ladypanther]

It is sad that we still have this discussion in this day and time. I do not understand how anyone could still be prejudiced, but I know they are. I am still surprised everytime. So, obviously, I don't care what color anyone is.

As far as Cam not being able to start from day 1...that is a function of his experience, not his ability. Rivera prefers that rookie QB's sit for a while. He would probably be the perfect head coach for Newton as long as he had a team of coaches that can develop a QB. Rivera will get a vet to play for at least 1 year, maybe 2.

Not sure if Cam is the guy, but I would not be upset if the Panthers pick him at #1. You can't be afraid to lose if you are going to play to win.

[Mr. Scot]

ESPN boards?

The Panthers used to have an official team message board.

Someone that was a PSL owner whined to a team official (Mark Richardson, I suspect) that they weren't treated "respectfully" enough and the plug got pulled.

[Tom]

In all the discussion of quarterbacks on here, I've only ever seen one person say he didn't like black quarterbacks, and he was roundly chastised for it.

It's more subtle than that. It's when people question the work ethic or intelligence of the black qb. Has there been any debate over whether Gabbert has the drive or intelligence to become a good NFL qb? Not really.

I also saw one announcer at the combine refer to Cam as "well spoken". Do white guys get described as well spoken? No, it's just taken as a given that they are.

[Swarly]

It's more subtle than that. It's when people question the work ethic or intelligence of the black qb. Has there been any debate over whether Gabbert has the drive or intelligence to become a good NFL qb? Not really.

I also saw one announcer at the combine refer to Cam as "well spoken". Do white guys get described as well spoken? No, it's just taken as a given that they are.

Actually, there has. I personally questioned Gabbert's football IQ when he made that horrible game losing interception in his bowl game.

You don't hear much about Gabbert here because 95% of the quarterback threads on here are about Newton.

[ncmonzta]

It's more subtle than that. It's when people question the work ethic or intelligence of the black qb. Has there been any debate over whether Gabbert has the drive or intelligence to become a good NFL qb? Not really.

I also saw one announcer at the combine refer to Cam as "well spoken". Do white guys get described as well spoken? No, it's just taken as a given that they are.

I agree with you. That's the type of sh*t that pisses me off. I'd like to here the guys on tv without their teleprompter.

[ncmonzta]

Actually, there has. I personally questioned Gabbert's football IQ when he made that horrible game losing interception in his bowl game.

You don't hear much about Gabbert here because 95% of the quarterback threads on here are about Newton.

there is a double standard when it comes to Gabbert. Just go look at the other thread and ESPN comparing Newton to Gabbert all of a sudden what you do in college doesnt matter and Gabbert is still the "better" QB.

[Tom]

Okay, maybe there has been discussion about Gabbert's intelligence and I missed it. My point is that people on this board and in the media seem to be much quicker to worry about about a qb's intelligence or work ethic if the qb is black.

[countryboi]

Were there many Panthers fans that didn't like Rodney Peete bc he was black?

no but there were a ton of fans that hated him cause he sucked balls

[Mr. Scot]

It's more subtle than that. It's when people question the work ethic or intelligence of the black qb. Has there been any debate over whether Gabbert has the drive or intelligence to become a good NFL qb? Not really.

I also saw one announcer at the combine refer to Cam as "well spoken". Do white guys get described as well spoken? No, it's just taken as a given that they are.

Questions about work ethic and intelligence are definitely not limited to black quarterbacks. I've heard them asked about plenty of guys. Most notably in the past, Ryan Leaf. This year, people have character and attitude concerns about Ryan Mallett. You won't see them much here though because nobody is interested in taking him at number one.

And yes, there are plenty of times when white quarterbacks are talked about as being well-spoken, or not so.

Bottom Line: It's not racist to ask any question if you think it's a legitimate issue, regardless of race. But for those folks who you want to read racism into something, it's possible to see it in anything - apparently even a compliment - regardless of whether it's actually there or not.