Cam Newton on referee Ed Hochuli’s denial: What did you expect him to say?

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton said what he had to say about Ed Hochuli after Sunday’s 27-22 victory over New Orleans.tmpplchld Hochuli, one of the NFL’s best-known referees, has told numerous people within the league that he adamantly denies saying what Newton claims he said.tmpplchld One could infer that Hochuli is implying Newton is lying about the incident.tmpplchld “Did you expect him to say anything else?� Newton said rhetorically on Wednesday. “OK, thank you.�tmpplchld As much as Newton and the Panthers want the story to go away, it was still alive Wednesday during Newton’s weekly news conference. Whether Hochuli told Newton that he was “not old enough� to get a late-hit call remains a matter of he said/he said, with no investigation from the league forthcoming.tmpplchld Newton deflected questions regarding the matter at his Wednesday news conference, opting to say he was “focused and moving on to Tampa Bay,� Carolina’s next opponent this week.tmpplchld But he made it clear he wasn’t backing down from what he said Hochuli told him.tmpplchld “My opinion, everybody has to be held to a standard. And as a referee, as a player, we always have that interaction with the refs,� Newton said. “They say before the game, ‘I’m here to protect you.’ So not digging into what happened, it just has to be brought up that no matter what kind of player I am, what kind of talents I have, what I do, I still _ as an official _ I have to trust that he has my health in his benefit. Whatever play is being held, I should never have to question my safety.tmpplchld “That’s the big thing you have to get from it, where I’m out there and I do not believe that another person has my best interest. I could get hit all day, and if the flag is not called, then shame on whoever. I just wanted to bring that to everybody’s attention.�tmpplchld Newton scrambled to his right in the fourth quarter of last week’s game looking downfield as Saints defensive tackle Tyeler Davison gave chase. Davison appeared to make contact about the time Newton threw the ball, and two steps later Newton went to the ground. No flag was thrown.tmpplchld Only three times in his four-plus year career has Newton drawn a flag for being hit late. Twenty-one of the 30 personal foul calls in regular season games related to hits on Newton have been for roughing the passer. Another three were for facemask and the final three for horse collar tackles.tmpplchld According to STATS Inc., that’s more penalties for hits against Newton than against any other quarterback in the league in that time. Lions quarterback Matt Stafford is second with 24, and Andrew Luck and Robert Griffin III _ both of whom came into the league a year later _ are tied at third with Matt Ryan with 23.tmpplchld Newton hasn’t been the victim of a personal foul since last season’s December game at New Orleans _ seven games ago.tmpplchld Newton said he was baffled when Hochuli told him he wasn’t old enough to get the call, implying more veteran quarterbacks than the fifth-year starter would get a flag on that play.tmpplchld Hochuli told Dean Blandino, the NFL’s vice president of officiating, that he did not make that comment and instead said, “the difference is you were running.�tmpplchld The executive director of the NFL Referees Association put his support behind Hochuli, saying the group stands with Hochuli and “that the accusation against him is totally false.�tmpplchld Panthers coach Ron Rivera said Wednesday that his quarterback had said all he needed to say and that he considered the issue dead.tmpplchld ___tmpplchld (c)2015 The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.)tmpplchld Visit The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte, N.C.) at www.charlotteobserver.comtmpplchld Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.tmpplchld