Hood Hargett Breakfast Club

On Friday Jan. 13th, 2012 former Super Bowl Quarterback and ESPN Analyst Trent Dilfer spoke to the Hood Hargett Breakfast Club and really got the attention of the media and Carolina Panthers fans as he discussed Can Newton’s future and in related articles discussed Tim Tebow and the upcoming playoff games.

Panthers QB Cam Newton fated for sustained success

By Joseph Person
jperson@charlotteobserver.com

For all the good things Cam Newton did on the field during his record-setting rookie season, it was a phone conversation Trent Dilfer had with Newton this week that convinced Dilfer the Panthers’ quarterback is destined for sustained success.

Dilfer, the ESPN analyst and former NFL quarterback, called Newton on Tuesday to let him know he was coming to Charlotte for a speaking engagement. Newton told Dilfer he was finishing up a workout at Bank of America Stadium, and went on to describe how he’d spent the first two weeks of the offseason.

“He’s watched every snap of this season already on his own. He’s not missed a day in the weight room. He’s already running,” Dilfer told the Hood Hargett Breakfast Club on Friday at Carmel Country Club. “He’s already training as if it’s the heart of the offseason.”

Dilfer has been impressed with Newton since he attended a personal workout Newton held for media members last February in California. Newton’s physical talent and willingness to work were evident.

“I just saw the biggest, baddest dude throw a football like I’ve only seen a couple people in my life throw it,” Dilfer recalled telling an ESPN staffer. “I said, ‘This dude is going to change football.’ ”

Dilfer, who won a Super Bowl with Baltimore during the 2000 season, said Newton definitely changed the Panthers, who were 2-14 and had the league’s worst offense in 2010 before Newton arrived.

“This place was awful. Terrible. It was unwatchable,” Dilfer said. “And here comes this dude, he comes in and he just changes the team. Not just his play, but his personality. The energy he brings to the situation is incredible.”

Dilfer was not as kind in discussing Denver quarterback Tim Tebow, who has the Broncos in the divisional round of the AFC playoffs despite a passing form that is the league’s worst. Dilfer said if there are 80 quarterbacks in the NFL, the 79th is “exponentially better” than Tebow as a passer.

Dilfer, who said he has tremendous respect for Tebow, said the Broncos’ read-option package has allowed Denver to overcome Tebow’s flaws. With defenses first watching for a handoff to the running back or a Tebow keep, Dilfer said the Broncos’ receivers are often wide open when Tebow pulls back for a play-action pass.

Trent Dilfer ranks Broncos’ Tim Tebow among NFL’s passers: 80th out of 80

 Chudzinski now on Buccaneers’ radar

Source: Charlotte Observer