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The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are hard at work getting ready for their Divisional Round game against the Detroit Lions on Sunday, January 21. And while Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales is certainly a big part of that, his attention was elsewhere on Thursday as he interviewed for the vacant Carolina Panthers’ head coach job.
“Bucs OC Dave Canales is interviewing for the #Panthers head coaching job Thursday, per source,” ESPN reporter Jeremy Fowler was among the first to report on January 17. “Canales coming off Tampa’s 32-point playoff outing vs Philly.”
On Jan. 18, the Panthers interviews two other candidates during the day.
“The #Panthers virtually interviewed Texans OC Bobby Slowik today. They met with Bengals OC Brian Callahan today as well,” Mike Kaye of the Charlotte Observer reported Thursday evening. “Bucs OC Dave Canales on deck.”
A few hours later, the Panthers’ official team account confirmed the team also virtually interviewed Canales later on the 18th.
Mike Evans Seems OK With Dave Canales Interviewing During Divisional Round
In the NFL hiring cycles, there is a fine line assistant coaches must walk. The good ones are likely in-demand candidates because of their team’s success, and many are still in the playoffs at this point.
At the same time, the teams that need new coaches are competing to get the best one possible as fast as possible, necessitating that these assistants often have to interview while their team prepares for a playoff game.
It’s not a great system by any means, but it is the one the NFL has right now.
While Canales interviewing — even over Zoom — with the biggest game of the year just days away isn’t ideal, at least some Buccaneers players seem like they are fine with their offensive coordinator pursuing a head job.
Reporters asked star wide receiver Mike Evans what he thought about Canales interviewing with the Panthers, and the five-time Pro Bowl pass-catcher had nothing but positive things to say.
“Oh, Dave has done a great job. He’s so positive every day. He knows exactly what to say, and he’s a really brilliant mind, so any team would be lucky to have him as a head guy,” Evans said about his top offensive coach.
Why Buccaneers OC Dave Canales Could Fit With the Panthers
Buccaneers fans may not want to hear it, but the job Canales did with Baker Mayfield was so good that it makes him a great fit with an NFC South rival.
Mayfield, the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NFL draft ahead of Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson, was on the verge of washing out of the NFL this past offseason after failing to lock down the starting QB job with the Cleveland Browns, Panthers, or Los Angeles Rams. However, working with Canales has given the QB a new lease on his pro football life.
In 2023, Mayfield finished the season 364-of-566 passing (64.3%) for 4,044 yards with 28 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. That represents career highs completion percentage, passing yards, and passing touchdowns with his second-best interception rate.
So, to summarize, Canales took a past No. 1 pick who seemed like a bust and turned him into a QB starting a Divisional round game in the NFL playoffs against the Lions.
Panthers rookie QB Bryce Young still has a lot more time before he gets to the Mayfield-level scrap heap, but he’s facing the same pressure the former Browns QB did back in 2018. And when Carolina hires its new coach, that will now be the third head coach and OC Young has worked with since being drafted.
Texans OC Bobby Slowik, who helped make 2023’s No. 2 pick, C.J. Stroud, better than Young right out of the gate, is a Panthers head coach candidate, too, and he would make an excellent choice. If not for Slowik, though, Canales would help improve Carolina, much to Buccaneers fans’ chagrin.
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