When fans are asked to name the NFL’s most hopeless team, their answer is often the Carolina Panthers.
This bottom-of-the-barrel NFL franchise had the league’s worst record last season at 2-15. To make matters worse, despite finishing last, the Panthers don’t possess their own first-round draft pick, which would have been No. 1 overall. That pick belongs to the Chicago Bears after a swap last year that allowed Carolina to draft Bryce Young.
After a terrible season where the team took a step back under Frank Reich and his coaching staff, a new era in Panthers football has begun.
It’s time for the Dave Canales era.
Front Office, Coaching Hope for Panthers?
Is Dave Canales a good hire? Only time will tell. However, for fans, it should be encouraging that he has delivered great success throughout every stop in his career.
In 2022, the Seattle Seahawks traded star quarterback Russell Wilson to the Denver Broncos. The Seahawks rocked with journeyman quarterback Geno Smith, who had a resurrection type of year, largely thanks to Canales, who was his quarterback coach at the time. Following that successful year, Canales joined the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as their offensive coordinator. During his short stint with Tampa, he helped resurrect Baker Mayfield into a division-winning, Pro Bowl-clinching quarterback.
The hope is that Canales can similarly elevate Bryce Young. The quarterback resurrector may be working his magic again.
#Panthers HC Dave Canales on what he thinks Bryce Young can become:
“Sky is the limit…He’s been a winner in High School, he won at Alabama, and when we build the team the right way he’ll be a winner here.”https://t.co/E9UDwKz7Ag pic.twitter.com/K0Jv4C2rdB
— Keep Purring Podcast (Ben) (@KeepPurringBen) February 1, 2024
As for the front office, after Scott Fritterer was fired, owner David Tepper hired an in-house candidate and former player, Dan Morgan, as his general manager. Tepper decided to go with a two-person front office and also hired former Kansas City Chiefs vice president of football operations, Brandt Tillis, for a similar role. The Chiefs are currently attempting to win back-to-back Super Bowls, so it’s fair to assume that Tillis knows his stuff when it comes to football operations.
Establishing defensive stability, the Panthers have retained defensive coordinator Ejero Evero for 2024. His defense was one of the few bright spots on the Panthers last season. With a component offense and defense, perhaps the Panthers could start to turn things around next year.
I Used to Pray For Times Like This
In the words of Meek Mill, “I used to pray for times like this, to rhyme like this.” David Tepper seems to be taking a backseat and letting people do their jobs. Just must let Canales coach and let Tillis and Morgan construct the roster how they want to. Fans can only hope that Tepper learned from the horrible season to not interfere with football operations.
So, back to the question at hand: is there hope for the Carolina Panthers? Yes, but the true test will be the regular season. That’s when fans will decide whether Canales was a good hire.
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