Even though the Pro Bowl is little more than an offensive display, where defense and intensity are both at a very rare premium, Cam Newton was disappointed in his performance.

Newton played the whole second half, and completed only 9 out of 27 passes for 2 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. The end result was a 59-41 AFC victory Newton did say that sometimes it was difficult to see if the defense was actually giving their all on every play. “That’s my job to find and still perform at a high level. I think I failed myself, and to some degree the fans. I didn’t put on my best performance,” Newton said. “But I was still trying to get into a groove or rhythm of the game. But at the end of the day, it’s still football. And if you’re not out there giving it your all, it will show.”

The AFC defense pretty much took the first half off, but did not let Newton get off that easy. Newton was sacked a few times and rushed out of the pocket many others. Overall, he was outplayed in the second half by Andy Dalton, who completed 7 of 9 passes for 2 touchdowns.

“You live and you learn. I’m not going to point any fingers or take any shots at anybody because at the end of the day football is still a physical sport,” Newton said. “So what was done to me was done to me, and I take it all with a love of the game. Hopefully, I get back there and have a better performance.”

When asked what he needs to improve on next year Newton replied, “with me going back and watching the film of last year, the only that keeps coming out still to this day is protecting the football. What was it, 17 interceptions that I threw? Those have to be cut down and minimized for us to have success as an overall team.”

It was a similar story at the Pro Bowl, where Newton managed to throw more interceptions than touchdowns. It will definitely be an area of concern for the Carolina Panthers at training camp.

Some fans are worried Tucker might be rusty, because he only has one sack in the last three years. His last time having excellent production was in 2008 when he played in 12 games and had 5.5 sacks. He is, however, quite versatile and can play either defensive end or linebacker.

Tucker was undrafterd, but fought his way onto the Chargers practice squad, and once Shawn Merriman went down, had a chance to start.

Tucker played his college ball at the ACC’s Wake Forest University. He played quarterback and defensive end for his high school football team, and was also a 4 year basketball starter. He was born in Morristown, New Jersey and is no doubt excited to return to the East Coast after spending his last 5 years in San Diego. Ron Rivera and his number 28th ranked defense are definitely happy he is.

In the following weeks, Rant Sport’s team writers will contribute to a massive slide-show Mock NFL draft. Each writer will submit their pick in order to our head editor, and it will be a wonderful compilation of all the writing talent at Rant.

The writer assigned to each team writes a roughly 400 word explanation of their pick, and it is put onto a massive Rant Sports slide show. It is an exciting way for all of our writers to collaborate while sharing their work with you.

Each writer makes a pick within about 12 hours of each other, and then the piece is submitted all on the same day. It is a massive, exciting project, and a project  all Rant writers look forward to each year.

This writer won’t reveal his pick until the time comes. (Mostly because I won’t know my pick, until I see who is left on the board!) But don’t miss your Carolina Panthers pick coming soon, and all the writers at Rant look forward to sharing our work with you in the future.

He will probably be a starter, and if the Panthers add another defensive lineman in the draft, his role as starter and mentor cannot be overlooked, because it is on the defensive side of the ball that the Panthers need to greatly improve in this year.

Edwards handled his limited role last year as a true professional. “He was out there at practice every day and every meeting too, and he didn’t have to do that,” Panthers defensive tackle Sione Fua said. “Pregame, he’d get hyped up with the rest of us, jumping around and dancing around. Then during the game he’d watch every play, and if he saw something, he would come by and tell us what we could do better or to congratulate us for a great play. He showed us how to be a pro defensive tackle.”

He was disappointed that he could not play, but adjusted well to his role, and his role next year should increase along with his playing time. Edwards is also not setting his sights very low either. “We’re going to have a full offseason, and it’s going to be exciting to see what we can do,” Edwards said. “I only have a few bullets left, so I’m going to be firing from all the chambers.”We’ve got to get it done next year – all the way to the top.” Ron Rivera hopes so as well.

In a fan vote for the top ten plays of the year the Carolina Panthers had the Annexation of Puerto Rico Play win  #2. They also had the #5 play when Cam rushed a ball 54 yards for a touchdown on Christmas Eve.

“Cam’s ability to run and throw, it just adds another dimension,” coach Ron Rivera said. “It has been kind of neat to see the different things we’ve been able to do with him over the course of the season and show he’s an integral part of what we are and what we’re going to become.

It was a play previously made famous by the children’s movie “Little Giants”. Rick Moranis’ Giants used the play on the last play of the game against Ed O’Neill’s hated Cowboys, and the nerdy football team came away with the victory.

For the Panthers, Cam Newton hiked the ball, handed it to Richard Brockel through Brockel’s own legs and sprinted to the right. The defense followed Cam, because he had more rushing touchdowns than any quarterback ever last year, and Brockel got into the end zone without being touched.

“When we put that play in, I never thought in a million years that that play was going to work, let alone get a touchdown,” receiver Brandon LaFell said.

It did go for a touchdown, and the Texans sure didn’t see it coming.

Cam Newton spoke to Panthers.com after receiving the AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award from Katy Perry. Cam was apparently quite nervous. “My heart is just officially stopped pumping. I thought it was about to pop this button the way it was pumping so hard.  Nervousness, anxiety, the works.“

When asked why he was nervous he replied, “I don’t know, it’s just human. And you know, hard work does pay off. “

Cam is the first Panther ever voted Offensive Rookie of the Year. The Panthers only other Rookie of the Year was Julius Peppers in 2002, but he won the Defensive Rookie of the Year. Cam had more passing yards than any rookie quarterback ever and more rushing touchdowns than any quarterback ever. Cam received 47 of the 50 votes, and Andy Dalton received the other 3. Cam placed credit on all the people who helped him get here.

“It means so much especially with the people that don’t get the credit, but deserve it: family members, teammates, coaching staff. Everybody all combined, you know, helped me, and I just want to thank them.”

It must be a nicer winter for Cam after the scrutiny he faced last year about not being able to play quarterback at the pro level. When asked if proving doubters wrong was some sort of vindication, Cam replied, “to some degree it is, that’s just the competitive nature of the beast and I’m just grateful that it all came out on the good side.”

The Carolina Panthers are looking forward to a career full of awards for Cam Newton, who has a bright future ahead of him.

Tournament profits will benefit Carolina Panthers charities, and there are still slots open in the Weekend Warrior division. The registration deadline is March 9, 2012 and is first-come, first-served. The game is 4 on 4 flag football and each team can have 2 substitutes. Each team gets to play a minimum of three games on the first day of pool play, and the second day is a single elimination tournament. Friends and family are encouraged to come and support their players, and it should be a competitive two days of play.

Division champions will receive championship rings and will be recognized during a special on-field presentation at a Panthers preseason home game in 2012. It should be a fun day for the Panthers’ fans who get to play on Bank of America field.

Hines had one of his least productive years in the past season, and for the first time didn’t have a catch in a playoff game. He had the lowest number of receiving yards and touchdowns since his rookie year and struggled to crack the depth chart last year. It doesn’t seem like a fitting end to his career in Pittsburgh, and it is a shame father time is ushering Hines out the door. It’s obvious that Hines doesn’t want to leave.

“I don’t normally like to respond to rumors, but as I’ve said all along, I want to finish my career with the Pittsburgh Steelers,” Ward posted on facebook this Saturday.

The Steelers would owe Ward a $4 million dollar bonus in March unless they cut him. Ward has said also that he would re-structure his contract to stay in Pittsburgh, but it seems the Steelers are not interested. The Steelers loss, however, could be the Panther’s gain.

Ward’s ceiling could be the Panthers # 2 receiver, and at the very least Hines could be a great mentor to the Panther’s young crop of receivers. He could also be the 3^rd or 4^th string wide receiver used against dime and nickel packages. He is also an excellent run blocker and could be used selectively on run plays to block. He’s an excellent locker room guy, and can help the continued culture change in Carolina.

Teammate Antonio Brown supports Ward: “He sets the tone in the room,” Brown said. “We definitely want to help a guy like him win.”

For the first time in franchise history, the Panthers have a different logo! Or do they? The new logo appears to be exactly like the old one, but without the former light blue black outline replaced by a dark blue one. The Panthers logo’s eyelashes are also darker than before. It is the first time the Panthers have changed their logo since 1995.

Granted the new logo is not all that different from the old one, but it is a little crisper, and it won’t hurt next year’s Panthers swagger if they look a little bit more intimidating out on the field. This is what the Panthers hoped to achieve with this new logo. Management has stated the new logo “features a more aggressive, contemporary look,”

The new logo accomplishes this, but in a subtle way. The changes in the logo are hard to spot, but they are there if you look carefully. It is a small sign that the culture is changing in Carolina. Carolina President Danny Morrison thinks this is the correct move. “We have one of the finest and most recognizable logos in the NFL and wanted to make it as modern as possible without losing the dramatic essence of the mark,” he said. It definitely adds a subtle splash to next year’s season, and we will all await what becomes of it.

Cam looks good in that black and blue, and all the other Panthers do too. It definitely is not that huge of a change, but for Carolina subtle change is good change.

According to Panthers.com, Cam Newton is attending the Super bowl, where he will no doubt observe the two star quarterbacks lead with differing but effective styles.

Tom Brady leads with his precision passing, pocket prescence and indominatable desire to win. Brady’s pre-game preparation is legendary, and winning his fourth super bowl would put him back into the best-quarterback-ever conversation.

Eli is looking to become only the 3rd modern era quarterback with 2 championships and surpass older brother Peyton with his 2nd Super Bowl MVP. Eli always has a little brother look on his face, but has found a way for it to serve him well. Nothing appears to faze Eli on the field, and he never lets a bad play affect his next play on the field. You can almost see the years of abuse the older Manning boys gave him paying off for him in the field.

Cam would gladly trade careers with either of these quarterbacks, but Cam’s road to the Super Bowl(if it ever happens) will probably include almost as many rushing touchdowns as passing, and Cam will have much more of an eye on Brady and Manning’s poise under pressure than anything else.

Cam hopes to make the Carolina black and blue look good again in the Super Bowl, and hopefully the end result won’t be like last time: a loss to the Patriots. It’s the result the Giants are hoping to avoid.