Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and cornerback Josh Norman got into a fight at practice Monday after the QB took down the CB following an interception.
After practice, head coach Ron Rivera explained the dispute began because Norman gave Newton a stiff-arm at the end of the play.
"The thing that we preach to the defense is that they score," Rivera said via ESPN.com. "And so, even though I blew the whistle, Josh kept going like he's taught and the offense continued to react.
"What happened was Cam got stiff-armed in the helmet, and that's where that escalated. The big thing we have to understand is: 'Hey, you're going to get stiff-armed. You've just got to handle it."
Newton and Norman had to be separated by teammates with the former calling the latter a "puissant."
Newton also said, "Hit me like that again and you'll know something."
The conflict continued throughout practice with Newton later yelling "I bet you won't do that again."
Despite the scuffle, Rivera wasn't concerned with the incident.
"He's a football player at the end of the day," Rivera said. "If he throws an interception, it might mean his tackling the guy before he gets to the end zone to give our defense a chance to stop them, he's got to do it."
Neither Newton nor Norman were permitted to talk with the media as they walked off the practice field.
Rivera defended Newton's leadership abilities and even revealed that the QB addressed the team after practice.
"He talked about it; he understands his responsibility," Rivera said. "And he understands what we're trying to do as a football team...At the end of the day, we're all family.
"And the poignant moment, as far as I was concerned, was when I brought the team up he broke it down with the word family, which is what Cam was trying to express."
Newton recently signed a five-year, $103.8 million extension with the Panthers. He is 30-31-1 in the regular season and 1-2 in the playoffs since being selected first overall in the 2011 NFL draft.
