Cam Newton explains why he did not wear a tie

“The call Panthers coach Ron Rivera made on Sunday night (is) the most stunning gamble for a coach whose entire personal brand is built on unexpected risk-taking.Was this punishment a rules-are-rules formality, or did Rivera lay down the law on Sunday to send a message to his franchise player that as the team slides out of playoff contention, his zany post game looks get less and less entertaining?” Pete Carroll discussed the free safety’s injury with ESPN’s Sheil Kapadia and the rest of the media, shortly after the Seahawks’ 40-7 blowout of the Carolina Panthers. Newton entered the game on the second series, but things continued to spiral downhill and the injury-riddled and struggling Panthers (4-8) lost 40-7.

The bigger culprit was the 240 yards rushing allowed by the Panthers’ defense and Carolina’s inability to finish drives in Seattle territory.

Against Seattle they played without middle linebacker Luke Kuechly, defensive end Mario Addison and safety Kurt Coleman on defense and center Ryan Kalil and left tackle Michael Oher on offense. He was just the second 100-yard rusher for a run game that has lagged most of the season. Score: Seahawks 10, Panthers 7.

That’s most likely true, but that doesn’t mean Thomas will be able to help the Seahawks’ championship quest this season.

After the players and coaches had boarded their buses to go to the airport to head to Seattle to play the Seahawks … It was Anderson’s first start in a game when Newton is active. As far as retiring, I think that’s just a moment in his head.

First, the Seahawks almost picked off Newton, safety Earl Thomas dropping the ball after a nasty collision with Kam Chancellor.

The Seahawks corner Richard Sherman said that him and his teammates spoke with him after the game. I’m not going to back off that. “It showed us we can get beat”.

Of more immediate concern, Thomas’ loss is a massive blow for the Seahawks. “He knows how to give us what we’re looking for, and he’s played really well”, Carroll said.

The offense managed just 271 yards and a season-low seven points. We missed some plays.

Like Seattle, Carolina wants to run the ball to set up the pass. The Seahawks is hungry with a retaliation for this showdown and it’s getting the highly-anticipated Sunday Night Football spotlight on December 4th with a kick off time at 8:30 P.M. EST.

Newton admitted that he knew the team rules and understood that he was required to wear a tie – he simply opted not to. Newton played the rest of the way, completing just 14-of-32 passes for 182 yards and a touchdown. But Benjamin had one of the Panthers’ best defensive plays, breaking up what would have been a Seahawks’ interceptions.

In talking with reporters, Newton said Coach Ron Rivera had pulled him as starter because, contrary to Rivera’s rule, Newton did not wear a tie while traveling with the team.

Rawls 103 yards in the opening half were his most since his 209-yard domination of San Francisco on November 22, 2015, as Seattle’s breakout undrafted rookie. But the front four did a bad job shedding blocks, allowing Thomas Rawls to run for 100-plus yard and two touchdowns. Rawls finished with 106 yards after he was limited in the second half, but the performance was an optimistic sign coming against the No. 2 rush defense in the NFL. Thomas sustained the injury in the team’s Week 13 matchup against the Carolina Panthers on SNF.