Carolina Panthers Guard Trai Turner Doesn’t Think NFL Officials Treat Cam Newton Fairly

As someone who is paid to help protect Cam Newton, Trai Turner is understandably frustrated when he sees the Carolina Panthers quarterback taking dangerous hits and not getting additional protection in the form of officials throwing flags for them.

The Panthers guard hopes something will change because, for one, it is too big a risk to Newton’s health, and, for another, it isn’t right.

Turner doesn’t think Newton is being treated as fairly as other quarterbacks — a point the quarterback set out to make in a conversation with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.

“It’s tough when you know that’s the guy that’s going to lead their team and going to help me get a win, and he’s possibly not in the game because of a hit that people are taking because they know that, one, it’s not going to be called; two, there’s rarely a consequence for it,” Turner told Alex Marvez and Mark Dominik on “Late Hits” on SiriusXM NFL Radio. “The same consequences I get for raising my voice about it is the same consequence that they would get for hitting somebody.”

He continued, “It doesn’t add up at the end of the day. It’s a terrible situation all the way around. It sucks for the person who gets the hit. It sucks for the person who’s doing the hit. And it sucks for the NFL because ultimately, I think, it puts a damper on things, and it makes things viewed in not such an optimistic light.”