Ex-Giants head coach Jim Fassel: Panthers lost due to Cam Newton's shoes
Former New York Giants head coach Jim Fassel offered up a bizarre reason as to why the Carolina Panthers lost Super Bowl 50.
Fassel said Cam Newton's gold shoes, which feature stats from his MVP season, are to blame for his team's defeat.
Originally, Fassel thought the Panthers would win but changed his mind once he saw Newton's flashy footwear.
"All of the numbers pointed to Carolina. And when I saw Cam Newton walk out in gold shoes - 'MVP' - I switched my mind, essentially, right then," Fassel said on Mile High Sports 1340. "I said, 'That's not what a starting quarterback, MVP, leading his team - and I had a lot of respect for him during the season - that's not what happens.' You don't do that. And I said, 'This guy's already become soft,' and that's what he was."
Fassel becomes the latest person to deliver a coded criticism of Newton's performance, doing little to point out the Panthers quarterback struggled in the pocket or failed to manage the clock well in the two-minute drill.
It's worth noting that Fassel and Newton both lost in their lone Super Bowl appearances.
With h/t to Pro Football Talk