Quarterback Cam Newton and the 10–0 Carolina Panthers are featured on this week’s national cover of Sports Illustrated.

Quarterback Cam Newton and the 10–0 Carolina Panthers are featured on this week’s national cover of Sports Illustrated.

The Panthers have become this season’s most surprising team. The Panthers and the New England Patriots are the only two teams to maintain a perfect record through Week 11.

Carolina has been led in its quest to remain undefeated by Newton, who has generated controversy with his on-field antics. There have more flamboyant NFL players in the past, there have been more incorrigibly arrogant, yet Newton—in the midst of a perfect season—has been singled out for preachy moral judgment.

Newton leads a 10-page NFL package in this week’s magazine, where SI’s Austin Murphy will discuss the quarterback’s “superhero” qualities.

The following locations will receive the Newton cover: Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Washington D.C., Maryland, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Nevada, California, Utah, Arizona, Alaska, Hawaii.

Iowa football, which is also undefeated, is featured on the regional cover that will be delivered to the following locations: Missouri, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Iowa, Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota.

Also featured in this issue is a breakdown of how the Denver Broncos’ defense can prevent the Patriots from going 16–0, an examination of successful college football programs that are generally not taken seriously as contenders, and a profile of recently crowned UFC bantamweight champion Holly Holm.