Panthers QB Newton is a difference-maker

The Bears beat the Panthers on Sunday, but a bigger-picture question hovered over Soldier Field.

Looking ahead, does Lovie Smith or Ron Rivera have a better chance to win a Super Bowl first?

Smith is the Bears’ head coach. Rivera is his former defensive coordinator/current Carolina head coach.

So the curiosity is similar to who wins a championship first, Ozzie Guillen or the White Sox, Dusty Baker or the Cubs, Dale Tallon or the Blackhawks?

In the case of Smith and Rivera, the answer right now is neither appears very close.

But in the long term the smart money might be on Rivera. Why? Because he had the good fortune to become a first-time head coach with Cam Newton as his first-year quarterback.

My goodness is this rookie ever good. I don’t want to go crazy over Newton, but I did jot down during the game, “Future best quarterback in NFL history.”

If Super Bowls are won by the right player at the most important position in sports, Newton gives Rivera a chance to win one sooner than later.

After the Bears’ 34-29 victory Rivera went as far as to say, “When the rest of us (Panthers) catch up with him …”

Yes, Rivera said that Carolina’s veteran players and coaches will have to catch up with their rookie quarterback.

When it was mentioned to nine-year offensive tackle Jordan Gross that it’s usually the other way around, his explanation was, “(Newton has) been outstanding so far this year on and off the field.”

Projecting Newton to have an immense impact the next few years is no knock at Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, whose team also believes his upside lies ahead.

It’s just that Newton’s potential looks to have a chance to be a level above everybody else.

In the meantime, Rivera’s own rookie record with a young team is 1-3, and he’s just trying to win football games week by week.

“What they did was they won this football game the Bear way,” Rivera said. “Special teams, opportunities on defense and run the ball.”

It takes one to know one, and Rivera certainly was one. He not only was an assistant coach with the Bears but a member of their 1985 Super Bowl championship team.

The focus was on that connection leading up to the game. Rivera probably was exhausted by it but didn’t back off the emotions inspired by his return to the lakefront.

“This is a city with tremendous sports history,” Rivera said after the game. “When you’re a part of something special it means a lot.”

Several Bears players renewed acquaintances with Rivera during pregame warm-ups. Club president Ted Phillips came by to chat for a few minutes.

After the game, Rivera and Smith met at midfield to exchange smiles, handshakes, hugs and pats on the back.

Smith didn’t rehire Rivera as coordinator after the Bears reached the Super Bowl in the 2006 season. If there were any residual hard feelings, none were evident on this day.

Perhaps both Smith and Rivera are too preoccupied with trying to win a championship in the future to be concerned with what happened in the past.

Today the Bears are closer to that goal than the Panthers are. But in sports, close often evolves into never and further into suddenly.

A quarterback like Cam Newton sure can close the gap for a coach like Ron Rivera.