Jim Fassel had a very strange explanation for why Cam Newton played so poorly in the Super Bowl

ONE former coach is either a visionary or completely bonkers for thinking this is why Cam Newton played so poorly in the Super Bowl.

SANTA CLARA, CA - FEBRUARY 07: Cam Newton #1 of the Carolina Panthers warms up prior to Super Bowl 50 against the Denver Broncos at Levi's Stadium on February 7, 2016 in Santa Clara, California. Ezra Shaw/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

IT’S so bleedingly obvious, we can’t believe we didn’t think of it first.

Cam Newton’s shoddy performance in Super Bowl 50 — and by default, the Carolina Panthers’ 24-10 loss to the Denver Broncos in the championship game — was all down to one thing. That’s if you listen to former New York Giants coach Jim Fassel, that is.

The 66-year-old enlightened everyone with a bizarre assessment of just where it went wrong for the league MVP and Panthers quarterback when speaking on Denver radio program Mile High Sports 1340.

“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,” said Fassel.

“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.

“I said, ‘This guy’s already become soft,’ and that’s what he was.”

The “gold shoes” Fassel is referring to are the shiny cleats emblazoned with “MVP” Newton wore in practice and pre-game warm-ups.

Not too shabby

The only flaw in what is clearly a logical, airtight argument by Fassel is that Newton didn’t actually wear his gold cleats during the match. He changed after the warm-up into a pair of blue boots, and kept them on for all four quarters.

Fassel’s football nous can’t be questioned, having taken the Giants to the Super Bowl in 2001. But on this occasion, he’s probably not just barking up the wrong tree, he’s in a different park on the other side of town.

What he is right about is that Newton had a shocker. He only completed 18/41 passing attempts, threw an intercept and was sacked multiple times.

But he was criticised most for his failure to jump on a fumble, instead pulling away at the last second and hopping to his right — something Fassel wasn’t impressed by.

“You don’t want a guy who runs at the ball and then stops and watches everyone else go for it,” said Fassel.

“He was soft. He was expecting, well, ‘They’re gonna lay down and we’re gonna beat them.’ “That’s not what happened.”

While clearly unfair to place all the blame for Denver’s win on Newton’s shoulders, his unusually error-riddled performance didn’t do his team any favours.

It was a bizarre match from start to finish, filled with bloopers and mistakes in every quarter. The Broncos racked up just 11 first downs and made only 194 yards on offence — the lowest number of yards made by a winning team in Super Bowl history — a reflection of just how poor the standard was out there on Monday (AEDT).

Originally published as Jim Fassel had a very strange explanation for why Cam Newton played so poorly in the Super Bowl