Cam Newton has had himself a year. He’s the clear MVP for 2015 – fantasy or otherwise – and he’s also put up some of the best numbers of all-time. It’s not easy racking up 40-plus touchdowns in a season, and it’s even rarer to do so and also win a championship.
Previously, only 21 quarterbacks have put up 40-plus touchdowns in a season (that’s both running and passing), and only three of those guys have also gone on to win the Super Bowl.
Newton finished the regular season with 45 touchdowns – 35 passing and 10 rushing. Only six quarterbacks have had more in a regular season, and none of them won a Super Bowl. Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Dan Marino all fell short in the final game, and Manning, Aaron Rodgers and Drew Brees all lost in the divisional round of the playoffs.
Not that this is quite an apples-to-apples comparison. Newton is a different kind of quarterback than those guys (way more athletic, and doing more with his running). And stats come a lot cheaper now than they did in the past. But he’s had a remarkable, all-timer type season.
PLAYERS WITH 40-PLUS TOUCHDOWNS | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Player | TDP | TDR | Tot | Result |
2013 | Peyton Manning, Den. | 55 | 1 | 56 | lost Super Bowl |
2007 | Tom Brady, N.E. | 50 | 2 | 52 | lost Super Bowl |
2004 | Peyton Manning, Ind. | 49 | 0 | 49 | divisional round |
1984 | Dan Marino, Mia. | 48 | 0 | 48 | lost Super Bowl |
2011 | Aaron Rodgers, G.B. | 45 | 3 | 48 | divisional round |
2011 | Drew Brees, N.O. | 46 | 1 | 47 | divisional round |
2015 | Cam Newton, Car. | 35 | 10 | 45 | ??? |
1986 | Dan Marino, Mia. | 44 | 0 | 44 | no playoffs |
2012 | Drew Brees, N.O. | 43 | 1 | 44 | no playoffs |
2014 | Andrew Luck, Ind. | 40 | 3 | 43 | AFC Championship |
1994 | Steve Young, S.F. | 35 | 7 | 42 | won Super Bowl |
1999 | Kurt Warner, St.L. | 41 | 1 | 42 | won Super Bowl |
2011 | Tom Brady, N.E. | 39 | 3 | 42 | lost Super Bowl |
1998 | Steve Young, S.F. | 36 | 6 | 42 | divisional round |
2013 | Drew Brees, N.O. | 39 | 3 | 42 | divisional round |
1996 | Brett Favre, G.B. | 39 | 2 | 41 | won Super Bowl |
2011 | Matthew Stafford, Det. | 41 | 0 | 41 | wild card round |
1995 | Brett Favre, G.B. | 38 | 3 | 41 | NFC Championship |
2004 | Daunte Culpepper, Min. | 39 | 2 | 41 | divisional round |
2012 | Aaron Rodgers, G.B. | 39 | 2 | 41 | divisional round |
2000 | Daunte Culpepper, Min. | 33 | 7 | 40 | NFC Championship |
2014 | Aaron Rodgers, G.B. | 38 | 2 | 40 | NFC Championship |
—Ian Allan