Cam Newton Comments on Helmet-to-Helmet Hits, Week 1 Loss to Broncos

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton wants to move forward, even if it means forgetting the egregious hits against him in Week 1.

When asked about the numerous helmet-to-helmet hits he took during Carolina's 21-20 season-opening loss to the Denver Broncos, Newton said he doesn't want to focus on the issue Wednesday, per David Newton of ESPN.com:

"

We are dwelling on something I don't want to dwell on. My focus is the San Francisco 49ers' defense and the team that shut out the Los Angeles Rams. I gain nothing ... talking about the past.

The NFL is going to do their investigation and I know wholeheartedly that [head athletic trainer] Ryan Vermillion and his staff did an exceptional job of protecting me along with other players. My focus is trying to win football games through all of the hits and everything else. My job is to collect wins.

"

Although Newton might not want to talk about the hits, everyone watching was concerned about the reigning NFL MVP.

Vann R. Newkirk II of The Atlantic described the uncalled illegal hits in Thursday's game:

When roughing the passer was finally called on Carolina's potential game-winning drive, it was canceled out by an intentional-grounding penalty.

NFL on ESPN provided a breakdown of the contact Newton took over the course of Thursday's game against last year's Super Bowl winners:

NFL vice president of officiating Dean Blandino broke down some of the controversial plays:

According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, Broncos defenders Darian Stewart and Brandon Marshall were fined for hits in the game. The league is also reviewing the response from the Panthers' medical team, who didn't put Newton through the concussion protocol in the fourth quarter, per ESPN's Adam Schefter.

As for the quarterback himself, it seems all he cares about is getting into the win column in Week 2 after an 0-1 start to the season.

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