Coach Ron Rivera told PFT Live that Cam Newton's first-half struggles in 2012 occurred because the Panthers "put too much on his plate." "I think we put too much on him," said Rivera. "(In the second half) we backed off of that. Took a little bit off his plate. Put a little more on the playmakers. Put the ball in the running backs' hands. Put the ball in the tight end's hands. Put the ball in the receivers' hands, and all of a sudden you started to see (Cam) grow and develop." New coordinator Mike Shula -- Carolina's quarterbacks coach last year -- is credited with helping to "simplify" the offense for Newton.