CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton has bragged for years he has the best hands in the NFL regardless of position, and now he has a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records to back up his claim.
Newton in July caught 51 one-handed passes in 60 seconds from YouTube star MrBeast, otherwise known as Jimmy Donaldson of Greenville, North Carolina. That broke the Guinness record of 48 shared by Cleveland Browns wide receiver Jarvis Landry and former NFL quarterback Brady Quinn.
The stunt happened at Carolina’s Bank of America Stadium while Newton was rehabbing from January surgery on his throwing shoulder, which has since healed to the point the 2015 NFL MVP is set to start Sunday’s opener against the Los Angeles Rams.
Newton, who in 2015 questioned why he wasn’t on the all-hands team for on-sides kicks, didn’t hesitate to remind just how good his hands are in a video of the record-setting moment.
“Let’s just put it like this: I have the best hands in the NFL,” Newton said. “You can document that. I have film. I really do have film of me catching passes in an actual game. I didn’t drop one yet … that was catchable.”
Newton had one catch for the Panthers during his rookie season (2011) and unsuccessfully was targeted once in 2012. He had two catches for 42 yards, including one for a touchdown, during his Heisman Trophy season at Auburn in 2010.
“I’m telling you, these hands are tailgate-approved, much appreciated,” Newton said in 2016 when arguing his hands were better than those of then-Carolina linebacker Thomas Davis. “No gloves, either. No artificial, just straight organic hands.
“You don’t see that a lot in this day and age.”
Newton set two other Guinness records with Donaldson.
With Newton throwing underhanded, the two connected for 39 yards, 12 inches to set the record for the longest catch between the legs. The previous record was 34 held by YouTube stars Dude Perfect.
Newton then completed a 24-yard pass to a blind-blindfolded Donaldson to break Dude Perfect’s Guiness record for longest pass to a blind-folded, moving target.
But it was one-handed catch record that Newton seemed most proud.
“This is going in my house, man,” he said after receiving a plague from the Guinness representative.
This didn’t come without a little drama. The representative, after reviewing tape, noted a few of Newton’s passes were trapped against the body. Newton seemed genuinely shocked until told he’d still set the record, at which point he exploded into a loud “Yeah!”
“I wouldn’t have been able to do that without my quarterback,” Newton later added with his arm around Donaldson. “I just feel like we have a bond for the rest of our life.”