Carolina Panthers QB Cam Newton has back fractures after wreck

Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton was in fair condition at Carolinas Medical Center on Tuesday after his truck crashed and overturned on the Church Street bridge over Interstate 277.

Newton, lying on a sidewalk in black workout clothes, was treated on the bridge for at least 20 minutes before a Medic ambulance took him away. The crash occured about one block from Bank of America Stadium, where the Panthers play.

Newton will stay overnight for tests and observation, the Panthers said in a tweet.

Panthers owner Jerry Richardson told an Observer reporter at the hospital that he had spoken to Newton’s doctors but had not seen the player himself. “He’s in good shape,” Richardson said.

A second person, from the second vehicle, was taken by ambulance to a hospital about 10 minutes before Newton.

A witness, Tony Douglas, said he was walking on Church Street toward the Transportation Center when he saw a Buick sedan and the Dodge truck collide.

Douglas said the truck was heading south on Church and the sedan was crossing Church from Hill Street when they hit.

The truck flipped several times, he said, coming to rest on its passenger side. Douglas said he ran to the truck and saw the quarterback inside.

Afterward, he said, Newton “was alert. He was in pain.”

Joshua Wrona said he was driving three or four car lengths behind Newton on Church Street at the time of the wreck.

He said the Buick suddenly appeared in his field of view and hit Newton’s truck.

“From my vantage point, he came out of nowhere and hit Cam. It was a pretty vicious collision,” Wrona said. “He was moving quick, I’ll say.”

The car appeared to the tire of Newton’s truck, whose body sits high off the ground, he said. The truck swerved and skidded onto its side. Wrona said it didn’t flip.

Newton crawled out the truck’s back window and sat, quiet and apparently dazed, on a sidewalk, he said.

The Buick’s unidentified driver, writhing in pain on the sidewalk, told police that he was crossing Church Street when a truck “came flying down” the street and struck him.

Construction workers who wouldn’t identify themselves told an Observer reporter that Newton’s truck had barreled down Church Street, just north of the crash site, at speeds they estimated at 60 miles per hour.

Both Newton and the other driver were placed on backboards and in neck braces before being transported by ambulance.

The Buick Verano with temporary Georgia license tags later sat in Church Street near its intersection with Hill Street. It had been struck on the front-right side, with the hood buckled and bumper torn off.

The truck also had extensive front-right damage. The passenger compartment was partially flattened.

The Panthers drafted Newton No. 1 overall in the 2011 NFL draft. Panthers coaches and front office executives have referred to Newton as their franchise quarterback.

In his fourth season, Newton has the Panthers (4-8-1) a half-game out of first place in the NFC South. Newton has twice gone to the Pro Bowl, and he’s in the final year of his rookie deal. He will make $14.667 million next season with the Panthers, who picked up his fifth-year option in the spring.

Michael Gordon, Jonathan Jones, Joe Marusak, Joe Person, Ely Portillo and Todd Sumlin contributed.

This story was originally published December 9, 2014 at 5:07 PM.