After all of the hype prior to the start of the regular season, 2012 has been nothing but a disappointment so far for the Carolina Panthers as they’ve off to a 1-5 start–with their most recent loss taking place on Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys. One of the main reasons why the Panthers have struggled so far this season is second-year quarterback Cam Newton–who needs to work on his leadership skills if Carolina has any chance of turning this dreadful season around.

Newton has every reason in the world to be frustrated over a loss, but his press conference following Sunday’s game against the Cowboys was one of the most depressing things to watch. Instead of acting mopey and upset over the way things turned out, Newton should be finding ways to motivate his teammates to help the team bounce back.

In 2011, Newton displayed one of the most impressive rookie season in NFL history for a quarterback and it’s understandable how much pressure there is on him to match those numbers in 2012. However, nobody could have predicted this lack of production through Carolina’s first six games of the season.

Not only has Newton only displayed one game of 300+ passing yards, but there have been two games where he’s failed to throw a single touchdown pass and he only has one multi-touchdown game through the air. With these types of numbers, it’s no surprise to see the Panthers record just one win over their first six games and Newton needs to fix his leadership issues as soon as possible.

Otherwise, the Panthers could end up taking a step back compared to last season–which is the last thing they need to have happen.

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