SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Quarterbacks don't typically get in fights, particularly during practice. But Cam Newton isn't your typical quarterback.

Newton is 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds. He's built like a defensive end. He's been hit, as has been well documented, almost twice as many times as any quarterback in the NFL since the Carolina Panthers made him the first pick of the 2011 draft.

He thrives on dishing out punishment to oncoming tacklers. It's why he seldom slides as quarterbacks typically do.

As he told me after the first practice of training camp, he's not in the sport of "ballerina and gymnastics."

So that Newton got into a fight with cornerback Josh Norman on Monday after Norman picked off one of his passes isn't a huge surprise.

It also wasn't the smartest thing in the world. Newton is the franchise quarterback, as the five-year, $103.8 million extension he got in June will attest.

But getting into a fight was stupid, as outside linebacker Thomas Davis let his quarterback know during the scuffle that turned into a scrum with Newton at the bottom of the pile.

Imagine the reaction had Newton injured his right hand or done anything else that cost him practice or game time.

This also showed Newton isn't the guy that hides under a towel as he did during his first two seasons when things weren't going well. He's high energy. He's emotional.

Some players feed off that. Some get irritated by that.

Newton and Norman had been irritating each other for a week after one or the other made a big play. You could see it coming to a head.

When Norman stiff-armed Newton in the helmet as Newton tried to run down the fourth-year cornerback, it escalated into shoving and punches.

Teammates weren't surprised.

"It's kind of unusual seeing a quarterback get into a fight, but Cam's a tough guy," said defensive tackle Kyle Love, who played against Newton during their high school days in the Atlanta area. "He's always been a physical guy. He loves to play that physical game."

Center Ryan Kalil said he "doesn't worry about Cam."

"I've seen him do a lot more dumb things than that," he said. "So he's a big kid. He plays quarterback, but he looks like a big D-end. We don't tend to worry about him too much."

More dumb things?

"Getting in those sumo suits and running full speed at a guy," Kalil deadpanned. "That's a little more dangerous than what happens at practice."

That Newton let Norman get to him wasn't something the Panthers want to see carry over into a game when an opponent starts taunting him.

That Newton stood up for his self wasn't something to be ashamed of, either.

"He's a tough guy," Kalil said. "I've said that since I've played with him. You've seen it in how he's come back from a car wreck. He takes lot of hits. He's a running quarterback. He's taken hits in the pocket when we haven't blocked so well. He's never complained. He's gotten back up.

"He's a tough individual. That just kind solidifies that's his persona, that's who he is. Regardless of how much they pay him, I don't think it matters to him. He wants to go out and play as hard as he can and do the best for his team, and that says a lot about him."

You can argue Newton lost respect for losing his cool. You also can argue Newton gained respect.

"He has a lot of fight in him," tackle Nate Chandler said. "He's not scared of anybody. [He's] the guy you want as your quarterback."