When the Carolina Panthers drafted quarterback Cam Newton first overall in the 2011 Draft, it was no great surprise. www.cheapnfljerseyschinastore.us.com . Newton was coming off a monster season at Auburn and, even if it might take time to transform him into a passing quarterback in the NFL, he had rare physical gifts that made him worth the risk. After a preseason in which Newton completed 42.1% of his passes (24-for-57) for 300 yards, there was little reason to believe that he was more than a work-in-progress, that the Panthers decision to start him in Week One would merely mean a season of taking their lumps while Newton learned on the job. Then the bullets started to fly for real in the first game of the season, at Arizona, and Newton completed 24 of 37 passes (64.9%) for 422 yards and a pair of touchdowns, adding 18 yards and another touchdown on eight carries. Now, in the world of immediate reactions, the question isnt whether Cam Newton is an NFL quarterback, its whether or not hes a superstar. One of the factors working in Newtons favour is that the Panthers do have a high-end talent at wide receiver. 32-year-old Steve Smith is coming off a down season, but that may be just as much a fault of poor quarterback play as anything. Smith has surpassed 1,000 yards in a season five times in his career and caught eight passes from Newton for 178 yards and two scores against the Cardinals on Sunday, so this is a connection that will bear watching. Before we start working on Newtons bust for Canton, consider that the Cardinals secondary isnt the most challenging to face this season. After dealing Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie to Philadelphia, in the Kevin Kolb trade, and then losing Gregory Toler to a season-ending knee injury, the Cardinals opened the season with rookie first-roundp pick Patrick Peterson and A.J. Jefferson (who made one tackle in two games as a rookie last year) on the corners. When Newton, with Auburn, last faced Peterson, at LSU last season, Auburn emerged victorious, but Newton passed for 86 yards while running for 218. Safe to say that Sunday brought a different experience for both highly-touted rookies. Since Newton was so proficient running in college (1473 rushing yards for Auburn last season) it was possible to make some comparisons with Vince Young, the current Eagles backup who rushed for over 1000 yards in each of his two seasons quarterbacking the University of Texas and Young has met with mixed results in the NFL. Both are big, athletic guys that tended to achieve success more readily when running the ball. After yesterdays performance, Newton also shares something else with Young as Youngs career-best single-game passing performance, 387 yards in 2009, came against the Arizona Cardinals. (As a complete tangent, if Newton is successful, shouldnt that be at least a little encouraging for the Raiders and Terrelle Pryor? Pryor didnt run quite as much at Ohio State, but 2164 rushing yards over three seasons and a similarly big, athletic frame does lend to some surface comparisons.) Maybe Cam Newton is such a rare talent that hes going to step right in and be an impact player for Carolina this season. Maybe the big numbers will continue to build, but lets see how Newton fares against a more accomplished defence (say, this week against Green Bay) to get a better idea just how good hes going to be because right now, hes obliterated all expectations. Some other notes from Week One:- Green Bay split carries against New Orleans, with James Starks (12) getting more carries than Ryan Grant (nine). - Ravens tight ends Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta combined for seven catches and 104 yards with one touchdown. For the 2010 season in total they combined for 12 catches and 153 yards. - With Texans RB Arian Foster out, Ben Tate turned in a big performance (24 carries, 116 yards, 1 TD); maybe it doesnt matter much who is doing the runing for Houston. - Perhaps its not altogether surprising given that he missed a bunch of camp, but Titans RB Chris Johnson struggled against Jacksonville, accumulating 49 yards on 15 touches. Perhaps some credit is due to the Jaguars front seven, but Johnson wont have an easy touch in Week Two, when the Titans host the Baltimore Ravens. - Just when youre ready to write a guy off, 49ers WR Ted Ginn had a kick return and punt return for a touchdown against Seattle. He had zero receptions, though, so dont get tricked into thinking his value is going up. - Buffalos impressive showing in Kansas City brought a four-touchdown game for QB Ryan Fitzpatrick and RB Fred Jackson rushed for 112 yards on 20 carries but, seemingly out of nowhere, TE Scott Chandler also contributed five catches for 63 yards and two touchdowns. Since getting drafted by San Diego in the fourth round in 2007, Chandler had recorded one catch for eight yards in his career. - Cardinals RB Beanie Wells was one of my possible sleeper picks coming into the season, largely because his competition was gone (with second-round pick Ryan Williams injured and Tim Hightower gone to Washington), but he was impressive against Carolina, gaining 102 yards and a touchdown on 22 touches. - QB Donovan McNabb was awful in his Minnesota Vikings debut, completing seven of 15 passes for just 39 yards at San Diego, his lowest passing total since November, 2007, when he passed for 34 yards before getting hurt against Miami. - On the other hand, the Redskins got a terrific start from QB Rex Grossman, who passed for 305 yards and a pair of touchdowns against the Giants. Its the first time since December 2006 that Grossman has thrown for at least 300 yards and a pair of touchdowns with no interceptions in a game. While the natural assumption might be to blame a Giants secondary that lost CB Terrell Thomas to a season-ending injury late in the preseason, nearly half of the yardage the Redskins gained in the passing game went to tight ends (led by TE Fred Davis five catches for 105 yards) and running backs and those typically dont fall under a cornerbacks domain. Not having pass rushers Osi Umenyiora and Justin Tuck surely didnt help matters. In any case, the Giants looked a whole lot worse and the Redskins a lot better than expected. Injuries:- Bears WR Roy Williams left with a groin injury, not the end of the world, especially if it means more playing time for Johnny Knox. - Bengals QB Andy Dalton suffered a wrist injury, but Bruce Gradkowski is a serviceable fill-in if Dalton isnt ready for Week Two. - The Rams got hit hard. RB Steven Jackson left with a strained quadricep, and Cadillac Williams was effective (140 yards, 25 touches) in his absence, but that seems like an injury that could linger. WR Danny Amendola suffered a dislocated elbow that may keep him out more than two months, which should mean more looks for Brandon Gibson and Mike Sims-Walker in the Rams passing game. When it comes to the guy passing the ball, QB Sam Bradford suffered a finger injury that may leave his status in doubt. - A broken collarbone for Saints WR Marques Colston should provide more looks for WR Robert Meachem and, perhaps, Lance Moore (who has his own groin injury). TE Jimmy Graham also seems like a valuable target in the New Orleans offence. - Chargers K Nate Kaeding is expected to be out long-term with a knee injury. Considering how effective the Chargers offence is, whomever gets the call to replace Kaeding will have value. http://www.cheapnfljerseyschinastore.us.com/ . San Antonio was out of energy and emotion, which is usually when coach Gregg Popovich turns to Manu Ginobili for a boost. Ginobili is no longer the only player giving the Spurs a jolt of enthusiasm and showmanship off the bench. cheapnfljerseyschinastore . They were his team, the only team. Pressing a transistor radio against his ear, Blatt listened as legendary announcer Johnny Most described how Bill Russell grabbed rebounds and when John Havlicek "stole the ball!" At an early age, he was hooked on hoops.PRAGUE, Czech Republic -- The Czech Republics top scorer Jan Koller has retired from football. The 38-year-old striker retired from international football in 2009 but continued playing for French third-division side AS Cannes. He told the CTK news agency he decided to quit after he tore a thigh muscle. The 6-foot-7 striker is his countrys all-time leading scorer with 55 goaals from 91 international games. cheapnfljerseyschinastore.us.com. He scored his first on Feb. 9, 1999, in a 1-0 win in a friendly against Belgium. Koller played for Borussia Dortmund from 2001-06, winning the Bundesliga title in 2002. His other clubs include Sparta Prague, Monaco, Belgian teams Lokeren and Anderlecht, Germanys FC Nuremberg and Russian club Krylya Sovetov Samara. cheap jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys ' ' '