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Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales discusses the offseason as a chance for improvement after the team's playoff return. He emphasizes the goal of coming back stronger for the next season.
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For Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales, the offseason is an opportunity.
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Making the playoffs was a step in the right direction. But Canales now says itâs all about coming back better.
Channel 9âs DaShawn Brown spoke to Canales about the offseason and the next steps for the team after their first appearance since 2017.
You can find their conversation below:
DaShawn Brown: Now that you do have an identity⊠It feels like thatâs resonating throughout the building. You know who you are as an organization...what is the key to consistency?
Dave Canales: You canât just show up and go to the coachesâ meeting and practice on the field and think youâre going to be excellent. Thatâs the bare minimum. Staff included. I know how hard it was the first year to win five games, and I was so proud. I know how hard it was to win eight last year, and Iâm so proud of the work that went into it and now as we are starting to assemble this team and we have emerging young talent in a really solid group of veterans, to be able to take the next step for our team is going to require even more. If thatâs possible. Weâre gonna find it.
DB: During the off-season one of the huge newsmakers was the fact that you were handing over the reigns of playcalling. And you mentioned yes to be a part of the whole Moore but to spend more time with Bryce. In what way?
DC: I really want to be able to give him everything that I have to offer him, and I believe that allowing Brad to really be focused on the full call sheet and how it gets rolled out in a game and I can be more connected with Bryce at this point where... I love where he is; I love the mastery that heâs showing with what weâre doing⊠And itâs the same thing we just talked about. But now there are the finer parts of playing the position.
DB: Dan said recently, especially during free agency, speaking with guys who were coming in. There was a different vibe; guys were excited about being a part of what is being built here.
DC: Iâm really proud of that. Iâm really proud; collectively, this is the locker room. This is the coaching staff⊠the training room, strength and conditioning, you name it. All across our building. And even with our draft prep, we had some players come in for our 30 visits and to hear the buzz of, âOh yeah, we saw the playoff game...â Theyâre watching. And theyâre paying attention to whatâs happening here.
DB: Even given the success. This organization is incrementally building. You donât necessarily view it as building on last year this team being a new organism. Can you explain what you mean by that?
Dave Canales views the offseason as an opportunity for the Panthers to improve and come back stronger.
The Carolina Panthers last made the playoffs in 2017 before their recent appearance.
Channel 9's DaShawn Brown interviewed Dave Canales regarding the Panthers' offseason and future steps.
The Panthers' playoff appearance marks a positive step forward for the team after several challenging seasons.
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DC: I learned this from Pete Caroll, and he asked us not to assume our players are the same ever. We have guys going through a number of different things. We have a number of players who are engaged; we have a number of players who have lost somebody really important in our live. Some guys just got paid. Some guys are about to. This changes you. All these dynamics really change who we are and how we view what we do here, so our goal is to try to discover whoâs this 2026 Panthers team is. As quickly as possible. The only way you can do that is spending time with your players, getting involved in their lives. What did you think about last year. What have you been working on the last couple of months? Where do you want to get better? And then collectively, guys, where do we want to go this year?
>> You can watch the full interview in the video at the top of the page.