Hundreds of reporters had gathered around podium No. 4 when the NFL’s newly minted MVP sat before the microphone Sunday night. Quick, abbreviated answers filled his interview session in the bowels of Levi’s Stadium. On the sport’s biggest stage, Newton failed to deliver a finale befitting his brilliant individual season. The fifth-year starting quarterback completed 18 of 41 passes for 265 yards, no touchdowns and an interception as the favorite to win Super Bowl 50 fell to Denver, 24-10. Given that the NFL’s top-ranked defense had largely eliminated running lanes, he tried again and again to make throws under pressure. Newton’s dual-threat heroics were one of central story lines of the 2015 NFL season. Newton arrived at Levi’s Stadium trying to build off a 10-game stretch in which he boasted a quarterback rating of 119.1. A unique feat — becoming the first quarterback to win a Heisman Trophy, college football national championship, NFL MVP and Super Bowl — hung in the balance.