NFL Rookie of the Year 2011: Cam Newton's Great Season Will Be First of Many

As hard as it may be to imagine Cam Newton ever topping his brilliant rookie season, it's going to happen, and it's going to happen a lot. 

Quarterbacks tend to get better as they learn NFL defenses more. Rookies seasons are often filled with a lot of growing pains. Even the best, most complex SEC defenses don't hold a candle to what is seen in the NFL. 

If Newton adjusted that quickly from college to the NFL, he is only going to get better. When you consider his numbers this season, that is a scary thought. 

Completions	Attempts	Percentage	Yards	TDs	Interceptions	Rating
310	517	60	4,051	21	17	84.5

On top of that, throw in 706 rushing yards with 14 touchdowns, and consider that it's only going to get better—it has to. 

For one, the team is going to get better. With Jon Beason returning and a high draft pick (eighth or ninth depending on a coin toss), the Panthers are going to have an instantly improved defense, which means that the Panthers won't be losing as much. 

That all means that Newton won't be throwing as many passes, which will bump his completion percentage up and interceptions down. As we saw this year, he did a pretty good job even when defenses knew what was coming. 

Now, you might think that his yards and touchdowns will go down, but when you consider that the defenses won't know he's going to pass, the element of surprise will offset the lack of raw attempts. 

Also, what receivers did the Panthers have this year other than Steve Smith? Jeremy Shockey and Greg Olsen are good red-zone options, but they're not terribly lethal receivers until the red zone. 

When Brandon LaFell learns the NFL a little better, he will give Newton another consistently valid option to look for. That will also create favorable matchups for Smith. 

But this ultimately comes down to Newton. He entered the NFL with a unique throwing motion not normally conducive to the NFL game and still found a way to pass for 4,000 yards on a bad team. 

With a year of NFL action under his belt and a better supporting cast coming soon, Newton's numbers are going to be strong for a long time. With that, the flaws of his game (interceptions) will be minimized, and his skills will have a chance to be brought to the forefront. 

When Newton's career is over, his brilliant rookie season will only be a small note in the book of his career. It won't be easy to make us forget that season, but it won't be long before Newton is dropping jaws on a bigger stage. 

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