Fantasy Index

Factoid

Cam Newton

Newton could become first Super Bowl winner with 45-plus TDs

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
YearPlayer TDPTDRTotResult
2013Peyton Manning, Den.55156lost Super Bowl
2007Tom Brady, N.E.50252lost Super Bowl
2004Peyton Manning, Ind.49049divisional round
1984Dan Marino, Mia.48048lost Super Bowl
2011Aaron Rodgers, G.B.45348divisional round
2011Drew Brees, N.O.46147divisional round
2015Cam Newton, Car.351045???
1986Dan Marino, Mia.44044no playoffs
2012Drew Brees, N.O.43144no playoffs
2014Andrew Luck, Ind.40343AFC Championship
1994Steve Young, S.F.35742won Super Bowl
1999Kurt Warner, St.L.41142won Super Bowl
2011Tom Brady, N.E.39342lost Super Bowl
1998Steve Young, S.F.36642divisional round
2013Drew Brees, N.O.39342divisional round
1996Brett Favre, G.B.39241won Super Bowl
2011Matthew Stafford, Det.41041wild card round
1995Brett Favre, G.B.38341NFC Championship
2004Daunte Culpepper, Min.39241divisional round
2012Aaron Rodgers, G.B.39241divisional round
2000Daunte Culpepper, Min.33740NFC Championship
2014Aaron Rodgers, G.B.38240NFC Championship

—Ian Allan

Fantasy Index