Packers vs Panthers: What to Make of Cam Newton's Week 2 Stats

For the second week in a row, Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton threw for over 400 yards. And for the second week in a row, the Panthers lost.

In two games, the rookie Newton has thrown for 854 yards for three touchdowns and four interceptions, and rushed for 71 yards and two touchdowns more.

Indeed, this is impressive for any quarterback to achieve in back-to-back weeks; for a rookie, it's exceptional. While he's had four interceptions in two games, this is to be expected from a player with little experience. And it's not likely to continue as he gets more games under his belt.

Newton has been surprising in his two games, after he looked downright terrible in the preseason. He not only hung in there with the Arizona Cardinals, but he more than held his own in the face of his first major challenge of the season, the Green Bay Packers.

He's got unlimited potential in the league, and he seems more than capable of learning from the mistakes that have led to his turnovers in his first two games.

However, it is quite telling that the Panthers are relying on him for so much. While it is refreshing that the Panthers have in Newton a quarterback able to lead drives, his impressive stats also belie issues with the rest of the Carolina team.

In Week 1, he attempted 46 passes; against the Packers, he attempted 37. Pass attempts like that mean the team is often playing from behind, which is what the Panthers had to do in both games.

Their defense allowed 58 points to be scored against them in the two losses, which serves to not only negate Newton's impressive performances (as they're currently 0-2), but also continue to force him to make plays he's not yet prepared to attempt.

Those forced throws are the main source of his interceptions, and if the team wants him to cut those down, they need to make improvements on defense.

Newton should be throwing less than 40 passes in a game. The Panthers don't have a terrible run game, and if their defense can step it up, that will give Newton more time to make the right throws and less of a chance to toss picks.

He's not the second coming of Peyton Manning, nor of Michael Vick, not yet, anyway. But he's off to a great start. If Newton can fix his mistakes in judgement, he has more than a good shot of being named NFL's Rookie of the Year.