Ryan Clark and Jeff Saturday discuss what Cam Newton did so well to lead the Panthers to a 33-31 win against the Giants. (1:45)

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Cam Newton hadn't played particularly well and neither had his team, which trailed by 17 points early in the second half. But the quarterback made it clear to everyone at halftime and throughout the final two quarters that they were going to come back and win.

And they did.

This particular story didn't take place Sunday, when Newton rallied the Carolina Panthers from a 17-0 third-quarter deficit to claim a 21-17 victory against the Philadelphia Eagles with three fourth-quarter touchdown drives.

This story took place during the 2010 "Iron Bowl" between Auburn and Alabama, when Newton led the Tigers from a 24-7 halftime deficit -- it was 24-0 midway through the second quarter -- to rally for a 28-27 victory. Before that day, no team had overcome a 24-point deficit against the Crimson Tide.

Ever.

Cam Newton led Auburn from a 24-0 deficit to a 28-27 win against rival Alabama in 2010. John Reed/USA Today Sports

Newton did what seemed to be the impossible that day -- and that season. He led Auburn from behind in eight of 12 games en route to a 12-0 record, the national title and the Heisman Trophy.

So it shouldn't come as a big surprise to learn after Sunday's improbable finish at Lincoln Financial Field that Newton now has two more fourth-quarter comeback wins (15) during his NFL career than Aaron Rodgers.

Auburn coach Gus Malzahn, Newton's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2010, certainly isn't surprised.

"He has a great drive to win and gives everyone around him that confidence that it takes to come back and win," Malzahn told ESPN.com.

Dallas Allen, Newton's coach at Westlake High in Atlanta, would often say, "If we have Cam on the field, we have a chance."

Carolina coach Ron Rivera took it one step further, comparing Newton's desire to be counted on in clutch situations to that of former NBA superstar Michael Jordan.

"He'll come up and say, 'Coach, put it in my hands, Coach! Trust me!'" Rivera said of the 2015 NFL MVP. "It goes back to a little something I learned from Michael Jordan when we were in Chicago. Michael used to say, 'Certain guys want the ball when it's crunch time. Other guys just don't seem to come off the picks the way they're supposed to.'

"I've told that to Cam, and Cam has always wanted the ball."

That gives the Panthers (4-2), who face the Baltimore Ravens (4-3) and the league's No. 1 defense on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS), a chance every week. Newton already has directed two fourth-quarter comebacks this season, also leading Carolina to a 33-31 victory against the New York Giants in Week 5, punctuated by Graham Gano's 63-yard field goal with two seconds left.

He almost pulled off another at Washington in Week 6, but his final three passes fell incomplete inside the Redskins' 20 in a 23-17 loss.

Newton doesn't have the reputation for being Mr. Clutch as Rodgers and others do. But he is tied with Seattle's Russell Wilson for 11th among active quarterbacks in fourth-quarter comebacks despite playing fewer seasons (he's in his eighth) than everyone above him but Cincinnati's Andy Dalton.

Cam Newton reacts after throwing the winning TD pass to Greg Olsen in the fourth quarter against the Eagles on Sunday. James Lang/USA Today Sports

At his current average of two fourth-quarter comeback wins per season, Newton is on the same pace as New England's Tom Brady, who leads active players with 35 comeback wins over 17-plus seasons.

Considering Newton got off to a slow start with only two in his first two seasons combined, one could argue he's trending ahead of Brady's pace.

"I didn't realize he’d had as many fourth-quarter comebacks as he has," Rivera said. "'Cause I know there was a knock on him early on because he hadn't. But he's really come on and stepped to the forefront."

Newton also is solid in terms of game-winning drives, with 17, two fewer than Rodgers. Brees (44) and Brady (43) lead the way among active players, but both have been in the league far longer than Newton.

Because Newton's not a traditional quarterback in the sense that he relies on his legs and his arm to win, Rivera believes he gets overlooked for clutch performances.

"He's not a pure, pure pocket passer, although there are elements of his game where he plays very well from the pocket," Rivera said. "The success he has in the fourth quarter with the comebacks is a lot about his desire, wanting to win."

Best of NFL Nation • Assessing legacies of Brees, Rodgers

• Ravens-Chiefs best yet in Baltimore?

• QB Allen looks like star Bills envisioned

• 49ers brace for return to turf of terror

• Steelers getting after QBs at elite rate

Carolina wide receiver Jarius Wright believes there is a certain bias against Newton in terms of being clutch even though Newton was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Week for his effort against Philadelphia.

"Let Aaron Rodgers or Tom Brady or anybody else have that comeback, they'll talk about it for a week straight," he said. "Cam got NFC Player of the Week and I'm happy for him. But if it was anybody else they would talk about giving him the MVP for coming back like that against the Eagles."

This isn't to suggest Newton can do this every game. Nobody can. Newton just doesn't have the reputation for being a clutch player such as Rodgers, Brady and Brees.

And Newton doesn't care -- or at least doesn't admit he cares.

But like the other quarterbacks, Newton wants the ball with the game on the line -- whether it's for a pass or a run.

"I work too hard to be modest, man," Newton said. "I expect too much of myself for me to sit back behind and leave it to chance for somebody else. I take my mind to a mental state, I take my body to a mental state that, come any point of the game I'm willing and prepared to do whatever is asked of me."

Of Carolina's 28 plays in the fourth quarter on Sunday, only one involved a handoff. That was the 14-yard touchdown run on an end-around by Curtis Samuel.

On the other non-passing plays, Newton ran twice, scrambled on another and knelt on the final play. He passed for 201 yards and two touchdowns, completing 16 of 22 attempts.

That's why Rivera told players in his postgame speech while giving Newton a game ball, "Our guy in the second half didn't flinch. He wanted the ball every chance he got."

Allen saw that during Newton's senior season. He recalled one game in which Westlake was down 14-0 at halftime and "Cam put up 51 in the second half." He remembered another against McNair High in which Newton "literally willed the team to win."

But Allen said no game stands out in his mind like Newton's comeback against Alabama.

"That was the biggest game I've ever seen him play on the big stage," he said.

Newton tries to keep the comebacks in perspective, saying it's more important that he and the Panthers play well enough early so there doesn't have to be a comeback.

He couldn't remember the first time he engineered a fourth-quarter comeback in a game.

"I don't know," Newton said after thinking for a few seconds. "Let's just say that ain't my last one."