of course the controversy …

This story appears in the Jan. 9, 2012 NEXT issue of ESPN The Magazine.

IN JUST ONE FULL SEASON as an FBS starter, the 6’5″, 248-pound Newton won the 2011 BCS national championship and the Heisman Trophy while pulling off the stunning combo of leading the SEC in rushing and finishing second in the NCAA in passing efficiency. Scouts and draft experts, however, focused on Newton’s lack of experience, the allegations that he’d transferred to Blinn College after two years at Florida to avoid academic expulsion for cheating or that his family was paid for him to attend Auburn. On many boards, he was ranked the second-best quarterback in the draft, behind Blaine Gabbert. NFL Network analyst Joe Theismann wasn’t even sure whether the Auburn star was worthy of a first-round pick. The reviews were so harsh that Newton’s mentor, Hall of Fame quarterback Warren Moon, wondered whether they were fueled by racism. “But I can’t sit up here and look at it like, oh man, my critics are racist,” Newton says. “I blame JaMarcus Russell and to some degree Vince Young. If you have the opportunity to make that kind of money doing something you love to do, why would you screw it up? I’m trying to be a trailblazer. If Baylor’s Robert Griffin decides to come out, I want people to say ‘He can be the next Cam Newton’ instead of ‘He’s gonna be the next JaMarcus Russell.’”
Cam got next. Read Here.

Michael Vick giving the game to Tyrod Taylor.

Here’s an update on the NFL Lockout situation…

* NFL and players begin more legal action

* Players turned away from training facilities