Cat Scratch Reader
It’s Cam Newton Day on our Season Opener Countdown, y’all. That means the Carolina Panthers kickoff against the Jacksonville Jaguars tomorrow to open their 2025 regular season. Newton needs no introduction, even though we are five seasons out from his first departure from the team. We all know the man and what he meant to this franchise. His most effective leadership was by example and, when the team was successful, through his infectious joy over simply playing football. That makes him the perfect player to ring in the last day of the offseason.
The Carolina Panthers have been lacking in joy essentially since former head coach Matt Rhule unceremoniously threw Newton under a bus in an attempt to remake the team in his own remarkable image. Current head coach Dave Canales, the well known “optimism bully,” is the closest thing the Panthers have had since in terms of an uplifting presence for the team’s morale. Obviously, there is no substitute in the long term for winning to raise team morale, but it is what it is for now.
For those of y’all hanging around on a Saturday, jonesing for kickoff tomorrow, go ahead and hop into the comments and share your favorite Cam moment. Bonus points if, like his iconic “so y’all have been watching film, huh?” quip, you share a moment of pure joy.
