In the world of the NFL, legacies are often boiled down to single plays. For the legendary Cam Newton, that play happened in the cruelest of moments: Super Bowl 50. A late-game fumble and a split-second hesitation became a permanent stain on an otherwise legendary career. As fans continue to remind him of that one game, Von Miller couldn’t help but step up to tell the world they’ve got it all wrong. 

“They don’t remember how great Cam Newton was,” Von Miller said on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “It’s a problem. Like now it’s kind of like you got the young guys looking like, ‘He got the goofy head and this and that’. No, man. Just in my opinion, it kind of takes away from what they don’t know. Cam Newton was Superman.”

What’s interesting about Miller’s words about Newton is that he produced one of the greatest defensive performances in history that night to stop Newton. He constantly pressured the quarterback, finishing the game with 2.5 sacks and a massive forced fumble in the final minutes (that became Newton’s biggest nightmare) that effectively ended any hope of a comeback.

The linebacker didn’t let Newton breathe since the start. He delivered a crushing strip-sack that resulted in the Broncos’ opening touchdown in the first quarter. It was the night everyone had one thing in mind: No. 2 pick clearly outshone the No. 1 pick of the 2011 NFL Draft. 

Though it was Newton who swept the NFL MVP title, Miller took home the Super Bowl MVP trophy. 

Miller, the game’s MVP, still credits Newton for pushing him to that level, saying, “He brought the best out of me for sure.”

Those religiously following the league a decade ago can’t forget the year the Panthers’ star quarterback had in 2015. He became the first African-American quarterback to win the NFL MVP for leading the Panthers to a league-best 15-1 record. He didn’t just play the position; he reinvented it. 

Recording 35 passing touchdowns and 10 rushing touchdowns, it was his dual-threat peak. As Miller noted, Newton’s greatness forced his opponents to play at a Hall of Fame level just to keep up. But that wasn’t his only motivation. 

Earlier in August, Miller explained that he entered the game with a rare sense of calm, reaching a “flow state” where he didn’t feel any of the typical pre-game jitters. To get himself in the zone, he took a page out of Michael Jordan’s playbook and created a rivalry in his own mind.

“I had made it personal,” Miller told Johnny Manziel for a Texas A&M Tell All. “I made things personal, in my mind, with Cam. He was the number one pick, I was number two, and he was the MVP coming into the game.”

That personal motivation ultimately got him charged up for the game.

Miller’s comments serve as a reminder that a player’s career is more than their worst highlight. The late-game fumble was certainly the turning point of that game, but the future Hall of Famer believes it shouldn’t be the turning point of Newton’s entire life story. 

Cam Newton confronts the Super Bowl mistake

Unlike Miller, Newton has been quite harsh towards himself. It’s been a decade, but the former quarterback admitted that there is a deep, lingering regret that continues to haunt him.

It happened with just over four minutes remaining in the game. Carolina was trailing 16-10, and Miller just delivered a crushing strip-sack that sent the ball loose near the goal line. As the ball bounced, Newton appeared to hesitate, which gave the Broncos safety T.J. Ward a chance to recover it. 

The Broncos truly capitalized on that turnover with a touchdown, sealing their 24-10 victory. Just like that, Newton’s historic 15-1 season turned into a heartbreak. While Newton initially defended his actions as a business decision to avoid a catastrophic leg injury, his tone has shifted dramatically a decade later. 

“It ain’t no excuse for me not jumpin’ on the fumble,” he admitted in 2024 on his 4th & 1 podcast. “I should’ve jumped on the fumble. Straight up. The competitor in me, if that happens again, duh. And this is the Super Bowl—all effort goes to, like, ‘Yo, Super Bowl energy.’ That wasn’t Super Bowl energy. And I think that is what hurts the most. You don’t get another opportunity to go back; it’s not promised for you to go back.”

If Newton were given another chance, he’s ready to “tear every ligament” in his leg just to seize that missed opportunity. Because after that, it never presented itself, and he hung his cleats without a single ring on his finger.