This picture is objectively funny. Why? Because one doesn't normally see a poodle posing next to a skateboard. Very often (if not always), there's an element of the unexpected in that which we find funny. Evidently Cam Newton isn't accustomed to a female reporter inquiring on route-running abilities. Without implying that such an inquiry is as rare as a skateboarding poodle, it appears that he didn't expect such a question from her, and it therefore struck him as funny. Not a big deal (although I should admit that Newton should have known enough to restrain himself, not least because he majored in sociology). He's not necessarily a sexist merely for having laughed.
Having said that, I can easily understand why his reaction would embarrass or offend the reporter. If I were him, I'd gently explain to the public that my reaction doesn't betray contempt for women; further, I'd like to think that I'd have the humility to sincerely apologize to the reporter for having upset her. Should Newton take such steps, I think we should cut him some slack and move on.
