I think there is also an adjustment period that defenses have to go through when they aren't familiar with an unconventional QB. And sometimes it takes the off season for teams to really figure that out. I think that's a big part of what happened with Freeman, though I agree that he also had more pressure and probably overdid things. Having seen him play several times against the Saints, I don't think he was all that great to begin with, though. He was very good at times, but not consistently good. He was just unusual, and teams didn't quite know what to do to best stop him. Seems like they figured it out last year. Newton could be a different animal. I think that, like Vick, he's gonna be able to succeed pretty consistently doing what he does, because he's got the genuine option to both run and pass, and has an athletic instinct that few other QBs seem to have. He has shown mental weakness (he quit in the last half of the last game they played against the Saints) and periods of baffling ineptitude (the all-star game), though. So who knows?
