Panthers' Oher 'left for dead' before Newton recruited him to team

Offensive tackle Michael Oher didn't know what was next for him last year, as he was in his native Nashville rehabbing from the toe surgery that led to him being released by the Tennessee Titans. It was not a good year with the Titans, and neither player nor organization was happy, as evidenced by Tennesse waiving Oher after one year of a four-year, $20 million deal.

But then he got a text from Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton.

“I didn’t say ‘I want you to be here,’ [but] I need you. That’s a difference. Want and need is two big different words,” Newton told the Charlotte Observer. “That’s what I used in that text, along with other words and explicits before the ‘need.’ And I think he got the feeling from it.”

A first-round draft pick of the Baltimore Ravens in 2009, Oher started 80 of 80 regular-season games with Baltimore, flipping between right and left tackle as needed. He won a Super Bowl ring with the Ravens in 2012, then signed with Tennessee after the 2013 season.

He may always be better known for "The Blind Side," the best-selling book and Academy Award-winning movie based on his early life, but Newton knew the Panthers needed a left tackle. His brother, Cecil Newton Jr., who spent two years on the Ravens' practice squad, vouched for Oher's professionalism and work ethic.

When Oher got Cam Newton's text, he knew he'd feel comfortable with the Panthers.

At practice this week, as they begin preparations for Super Bowl 50 against the Denver Broncos, Newton reminded Oher about his journey.

"He said, ‘To think that nobody wanted you last year around this time.’ I was like, ‘You’re right, man. They left me for dead and stuff like that. But I knew I was going to be all right once I got the call from you.’ He said, ‘I told you I didn’t want you. I need you,’ ” Oher said. “That made me feel at home, made me know that they wanted me.”

Oher signed a two-year, $7 million deal with the Panthers, and general manager Dave Gettleman recently said Oher was the team's biggest offseason addition, despite the criticism he initially received for signing him. Oher and center Ryan Kalil are the only offensive linemen to start every game for Carolina this year.