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Watch Cam Newton get in fight with teammate during practice
UPDATE: Cam Newton said he has "no regrets" over his actions.
This is not what you want to see from your franchise quarterback who recently signed a $103.8 million contract.
Cam Newton got into a heated scuffle that ended with him on the ground in a massive pileup at the Panthers' practice on Monday.
According to The Charlotte Observer, the fight occurred after cornerback Josh Norman intercepted Newton and ran toward the end zone. Newton chased him down and shoved Norman, who shoved back — and then this happened.
Good photo from the Newton-Norman fight. @theobserver pic.twitter.com/lpLc4Xp0V7
— Joe Person (@josephperson) August 10, 2015
Another one. pic.twitter.com/gfHnjclliT
— Joe Person (@josephperson) August 10, 2015
Aftermath of Cam Newton and Josh Norman tussle pic.twitter.com/J7Pzm5fAJl
— Black & Blue Review (@BlackBlueReview) August 10, 2015
The Observer reports that Newton and Norman have had issues all throughout camp, and Monday's fight had been building for a while.
More on the run-in, from The Associated Press:
An irate Newton got up shouting at Norman — "hit me like that again and you'll know something" — as he was being restrained by teammates.
After the altercation, veteran linebacker and defensive leader Thomas Davis screamed at the fifth-year quarterback, "That's stupid. That's stupid."
...
Panthers center and team captain Ryan Kalil said "I've seen Cam do a lot more dumb things than that" and that he doesn't worry much about the 6-foot-5, 245-pound quarterback.
"He's a tough guy," Kalil said. "You've seen it in how he has come back from a car wreck. He takes a lot of hits as a running quarterback. He has taken hits in the pocket when we haven't protected well and he hasn't complained. So he's a tough individual. So that kind of solidifies his persona and that is who he is."
Coach Ron Rivera said Monday after practice this is normally the time during training camp when tempers began to flare, but acknowledged, "You really don't expect it to be your quarterback."
"The thing I try to take away from it, as you look for the positive in it, is hey, he stood up for himself and the other guy stood up for himself," Rivera said. "I know it's the quarterback, but we treat everybody the same. That's the way I'm going to look at it. That's my spin on it."
Neither player was made available to speak with reporters after practice.
Newton was wearing a red jersey during practice, which is supposed to signal to other players to not touch or tackle him. But it was Newton that instigated the fight when he went after Norman.
They're both extremely competitive players and two of the biggest trash talkers on the team, often overheard jawing at the other side of the line. Normally those words are just talk, but this time it turned nasty.
Even after the altercation, Newton and Norman continued to jaw at each other from across the field with Newton daring him to do it again.
"They are always chirping, but that is part of the competition," Rivera said. "That is what happens. The big thing is you have to be able to handle it because it's going to happen in the game. You have to learn that when you get to this situation you deal with it, cope with it and handle it better the next time. Unfortunately it got more physical than it needed to be."
Rivera isn't worried about emotions spilling over into the locker room.
Teammates said Newton addressed the team immediately after practice on the field.
