Carolina Panthers’ quarterback Cam Newton was considered to be a popular choice for the NFL’s MVP and best-offensive player awards this season, but things didn’t exactly go his way at the Super Bowl on February 7th. Newton and his teammates were humbled by a score of 24-10 at the hands of the Denver Broncos and 39-year-old quarterback Peyton Manning at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, California. Newton has been under fire since the game for the way he acted during the post-game media scrum. The 26-year-old has defended his actions though by stating, “I’m a sore loser, but who likes to lose?”

Newton attended a press conference following the championship game, but walked out of it about three minutes later. He answered most of the questions that were thrown his way with just one or two-word replies and sulked in his chair. Newton also told the press, “Show me a good loser and I’ll show you a loser.” He also added that he thinks the whole situation has been overblown and there’s not really anything to it.

In addition, the quarterback said he didn’t mean to offend anybody, but he’s not about to change his ways either, because that’s just who he is. Basically, Newton remarked that he had just lost the biggest game of his career and he felt lousy and didn’t really want to speak with the media. He said he invested a lot of time and sacrificed a lot this season and his emotions took over when he failed to achieve the goal of winning the Super Bowl.

Carolina head coach Ron Rivera stated that he wished Newton had handled the post-game press conference a bit better, but at the same time he understands what the fifth-year quarterback was going through emotionally. Rivera said Newton simply hates to lose and he’d rather have that type of player on his team than one who easily accepts defeat. Newton certainly wasn’t used to losing this season as the Panthers went 15-1 on the campaign and then won a pair of playoff contests before the Super Bowl.

When the Panthers have lost games in the past, Newton has often sat in the locker room for up to an hour before speaking with the media. The Super Bowl press conference was held soon after the game though and he didn’t have time to burn off his feelings and emotions by himself. Rivera added that the losing team should be given more time after the Super Bowl before having to meet with the media since everybody reacts to a loss differently.

Carolina fullback Mike Tolbert agreed and stated that nobody’s happy after losing a championship game so people shouldn’t expect the losing team to by smiling and joking afterwards. General manager Dave Gettleman chimed in by saying, “I want players that hate to lose and we all handle defeat differently.” As for the fans, it seems opinion is divided as there are many who believe Newton acted childish and unprofessionally and others who understood his actions.