Five Best Wins During the Cam Newton Era
5. Newton's First Victory in the NFL
Newton started the beginning of his 2011 rookie campaign with some phenomenal performances. However, the Panthers struggled with an 0-2 start to the season. This changed in week three, when the Panthers faced the Jacksonville Jaguars. Newton led Carolina to a 16-10 victory with 158 passing yards, 107 rushing yards (His first 100+ yard rushing game), and one passing touchdown. To make this even more special, Newton's first victory was in front of a packed Bank of America Stadium.
4. The 2015 Panthers' 41-38 victory against the New Orleans Saints
The greatest team in Panthers history entered Week 13 with an 11-0 record, but it faced one of its toughest challenges in the Superdome against the Drew Brees led Saints. This game was absolute madness. Carolina was trailing the Saints 14-0 before coming back in a game that had six lead changes. Newton threw for 331 yards and five touchdowns and rushed for 49 yards in the huge win to lead the Panthers to a 12-0 start.
3. Cam Newton's First Playoff Victory
After winning a terrible NFC South division and making the playoffs with a 7-8-1 record, the 2014 Panthers were not expected to make any noise in the postseason. They had to face a solid contender in the Arizona Cardinals in the opening round of the playoffs.
However, the Cardinals had to start struggling QB Ryan Lindley, who threw for one touchdown and two interceptions (to trigger the nostalgia even more, Luke Kuechly caught one of them). The Panthers defense held the Cardinals to a staggering 78 yards total while Newton threw for 198 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 35 yards. This was Carolina's first playoff victory in nine years.
2. Monday Night Madness Against Tom Brady's Patriots
The 2013 Panthers were on a mission on Monday night against a very good Patriots team. Newton's Panthers were 6-3 while Brady's Patriots were 7-2 at the time. Bank of America Stadium was electric that night, and for good reason. Also, one of the best plays of Newton's career happened on this night:
The Panthers would go on to win 24-20 on Monday night after Newton threw the game-winning touchdown to Ted Ginn Jr. Newton threw for 209 yards and three touchdowns and ran for 62 yards in one of the best games of his impressive career.
1. 2015-16 NFC Championship Game
This had to be No. 1 on the list, without question. This may have been the defining game of Cam Newton's career so far. The Panthers looked absolutely unstoppable against a hopeless Arizona Cardinals team in 2016. Carolina won 49-16 thanks to the efforts of Newton and company. Newton threw for 335 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 47 yards and two more touchdowns in a legendary performance at Bank of America Stadium. This was the highlight of the Panthers' incredible 2015-16 season, which was the greatest year in team history.
