Cam Newton hopes to put his money where his mouth is

Year 3 will be a big one for several quarterbacks from the 2011 NFL Draft. From Cincinnati’s Andy Dalton, to Tennessee’s Jake Locker, all the way to the top-overall pick in Cam Newton, who the Carolina Panthers drafted in hopes he’d become the face of the franchise for the next decade.

But the jury is still out on Newton, who registered ana fairly average 86.2 passer rating last season, but did sport a 7.98-yard average completion that was topped only by Robert Griffin III (8.14) and Peyton Manning (7.99). But a 57.7% completion rate, which ranked 26th among NFL passers, often stagnated the Panthers offense, and has also attributed to his 13-19 record as a starting QB. To make matters worse, Carolina has started 2-8 in each of the past two seasons, effectively ending their season before Thanksgiving.