It is rare you can ever say this about Cam Newton, but you can say it Thursday night as he starts the season against the Denver Broncos: The Carolina Panthers quarterback has nowhere to go but up.
Newton's Super Bowl performance in February vs. the Broncos was a jarring reminder that "Super Cam" is not truly superhuman. It included two mistakes that have shadowed the 2015 NFL Most Valuable Player for seven months _ a fumble he decided not to jump on and a press conference he sulked his way through.
Thursday night is Newton's chance to change the narrative once again, to give people a dazzling and symbolic new set of memories so the old ones can fade.
Newton had little help offensively in that game against Denver in February, but nevertheless it ranks as one of the worst of his career because of the moment's significance. After leading the NFL in scoring in the regular season and averaging an astounding 40 points in their first two playoff games, the Panthers only scored 10 in the biggest game of all.
Now, in a Colorado stadium he has never played in before that is exactly one mile high, here comes another chance for Newton to rise.
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