CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- You can question whether Cam Newton is sincere or fake, as critics have done throughout his career. You can question whether he is a first- or second-tier quarterback, depending on the criteria you use to make such a judgment.

You can question a lot about the player who has become the face of the Carolina Panthers -- and, as Peyton Manning said before Super Bowl 50, the face of the NFL.

But you can’t question whether he’s good for NFL, often referred to as the No Fun League.

Just ask Tampa Bay defensive tackle Gerald McCoy, who's preparing to face Newton in Sunday’s regular-season finale.

“He is very necessary in this league in my opinion," McCoy said on a conference call. “The type of person he is with -- I don’t want to call it flamboyant -- but he’s outgoing and he shows his passion by having fun."

Whether it's for his play or for his colorful postgame outfits, Cam Newton makes the game more fun. Rob Carr/Getty Images

Whether you like Newton or not, the reigning NFL MVP creates conversation. He's fun in a league that often squelches that. One day it could be for an amazing move that only a 6-foot-5, 260-pound quarterback with amazing athletic ability can make. The next day it could be for one of his outrageous feathered hats or outfits. It doesn’t matter if he’s winning -- as he did all but twice last season -- or losing, as the Panthers have done in nine of 15 games this season.

There are many sides to Newton, and he shows them all.

You can’t always say that about Tom Brady and other top quarterbacks who are often guarded to create a persona that boxes them into what the league wants them to be. Boxing Newton into a particular persona is as difficult as boxing him in the pocket.

The latest example came on Wednesday when Newton spent most of a 19-minute news conference talking about visiting Taylor Austin Deckard in an Atlanta children’s hospital. Austin (that’s what his parents call him) has a life-threatening disease called pulmonary hypertension. On Tuesday night, Newton surprised the 10-year-old who had made meeting the first pick of the 2011 draft his Christmas wish.

"įt įš ñöt höw mü¢h wë hâvë, büt höw mü¢h wë ëñjöÿ, thât mâkëš hâppįñëšš" -€HÅRŁË$ Š₽ŪRGËØN #iWmW -1OVE A photo posted by Cam Newton (@cameron1newton) on Dec 28, 2016 at 5:17pm PST

He didn’t do it as a publicity stunt. He did it because he does things like this all the time. He did it because he likes bringing a smile to the faces of children -- a smile like the one he wears while 300-pound defensive tackles are bearing down on him.

“He just has that big ol’ smile all the time while he’s playing,’’ McCoy said. “And a lot of times, people take sometimes what he does for being angry or being a bad sport, and it’s just passion. He’s a very passionate player and he’s fun to watch.’’

Newton was fun to watch as he described his visit with Austin, who's scheduled to have a risky heart procedure Friday.

“Cam was awesome, real down to earth,’’ Austin’s dad, Tim, told ESPN.com. “Him and my son were shooting Nerf guns and playing games, doing things my family never would have even thought would have happened.’’

Newton does things on and off the field all the time that are unexpected. It makes him unique -- and sometimes controversial.

“I do it just to impact a person and say, ‘Well, if Cam is unique and tries to do certain things like that, then I want to be a part of that. I want to be a part of something different. I don’t want to conform to a crowd. I want to go against the grain,'" Newton said.

“A lot of people obviously look at [me] and critique -- maybe in a positive way or in a negative way. And that’s what you have to take: the good with the bad.’’

McCoy hopes that doesn’t change.

“That’s what’s made him a superstar in this league,’’ he said.

Struggles on the field this season make Newton a target for criticism for his activities off the field. Some suggest his spending the offseason working on his Nickelodeon television show is why he’s on target to have his worst statistical season.

Critics often ignore the time Newton spent around the show working on his craft, that the defense cost Carolina several wins early and that mass injuries to the offensive line have left the offense a mess.

Newton hears the criticism. Moments like the one he spent with Austin put everything into perspective.

“You have to really look back and always have a reset button for you to just realize why you do what you do,” Newton said. “Yeah, it’s kind of like a disappointment for the on-field product.

“But off the field, I think that people kind of look at me, and they see a unique person.”

And that’s good for the league.

“For so long it’s been stoic and been the same,’’ Carolina coach Ron Rivera said of the NFL. “It’s important that the personalities show. This is a game, and we should have fun when we play it.’’

Newton does that, from his play to his postgame outfits to his surprise visits with kids like Austin.

“So if I had to put myself in his shoes, you just keep being you," McCoy said of Newton. “Don’t let nobody change you, and he’s not."