This is how it's going to be. Cam Newton will throw more passes for more yards than any quarterback in Carolina Panthers history. Some of the passes will thrill you and some will make you wince.

But this is how the Panthers will play, and this is how they should play.

I know some of you don't like Newton's mechanics, decisions and the texture of the towel with which he covered his head in Sunday's 30-23 loss to Green Bay.

Newton threw 46 passes, 16 more than Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers.

This is not how we do it in these parts.

The Panthers have always run. Maybe they didn't under George Seifert, but who remembers? If running was by gawd good enough for Red Grange, Vince Lombardi and John Riggins and his Washington Redskins' Hogs, then it ought to by gawd be good enough for Newton and the Panthers.

Alas, this is a different time, and the old rules no longer apply. We have computers, smart phones and a new NFL standard: If you can't throw, you can't win.

Newton made many mistakes Sunday. He threw three interceptions. He led the Panthers to the Green Bay 2, 3, 6 and 15, and failed to lead them into the end zone on any of the drives.

"It hurts leaving the field with three points," says Newton, who after the game disdained his usual GQ pink and wore gray sweats, perhaps freshly dry-cleaned. "I think it is self-inflicted. Whether it is a penalty, whether it is a bad decision, you just have to get it right, and we are going to get it right. I'm not the person to sit up here and say, 'Well, we have next time.' I want to get it right, and I'm going to get it right right now."

Newton did so much right Sunday. He passed for a mind-boggling 432 yards, the most in Panthers history. Chris Weinke set the previous record five seasons ago with 423. Newton threw for 422 yards against Arizona last week.

The Panthers lost all three of those games.

Had Newton not flung the ball deep and short against the Packers, over the middle and from side to side to seven different receivers, the Panthers would have been crushed.

The Packers skewed their defense to make running difficult. It worked. DeAngelo Williams averaged 2.6 yards on 13 carries, Jonathan Stewart 0.8 yards on six.

The plan was to make Newton throw.

The strategy was sound. Because of the lockout Newton was unable to take advantage of the training and tutelage rookie quarterbacks customarily get.

Yet he threw for more yards in his first two NFL games than any quarterback in history has. Kevin Kolb held the old record, 718. Newton broke it by 136 yards.

"Think he's doing all right?" receiver Steve Smith asks.

The emphasis on passing is not designed to entertain fans during losses. This was Green Bay at Bank of America Stadium, and you aren't going to push the Packers by playing nice, polite, pound-and-punt football.

Also, Newton faced the defense of Dom Capers, one of the most innovative and respected coordinators in the sport. And when Newton wasn't making mistakes, he dazzled.

In the fourth quarter, Newton dropped back, moved around, stepped up and released the ball from about the Carolina 15. Smith caught the perfect pass on about the 20 of Green Bay. That's about 65 yards in the air.

Another play jumps out, this one less successful: On fourth and 4 from the Green Bay 6, Newton scrambled for 3 yards.

Green Bay took possession and the Panthers ran to the bench. Newton started to, and then turned and looked at umpire Scott Dawson. He couldn't believe he failed.

"We don't go into each game to compete," says Newton. "We go into each game to win."

The only way the Panthers can win is to throw and throw some more. It's 2011 in Charlotte, too.