Cam Newton recruited Michael Oher to Panthers with 'I need you' text

Michael Oher joined the Carolina Panthers last offseason after what appears to have been an extensive recruiting effort on the part of the team's star quarterback.

Cam Newton told reporters at a press conference Wednesday that he made his feelings known when he reached out to the then free-agent offensive tackle around this time last year.

"With the free-agent pool, I've sent texts out before, called guys and said, 'We'd love for you to be part of the team.' But Mike was different," Newton said, according to Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk.

"I didn't say, 'I want you to be here.' It was, 'I need you.' That’s different. Want and need are two different words, and that's what I used in that text, along with other explicit words before the 'need.' And I think he got the feeling from that."

Signing Oher was a move largely met with skepticism, as it appeared as though the Panthers were choosing to address their most glaring roster need with an underachieving player.

The former first-round pick went on to have what was by far the most productive season of his seven-year NFL career, however, playing a critical role in the Panthers recent berth in Super Bowl 50.