Dec 29, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Carolina Panthers] head coach Dave Canales talks with referee Dave Hawkshaw against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

Dave Canales begins Year 2 near bottom of NFL head coach rankings

Originally posted on Carolina Panthers on SI
By Zach Roberts | Last updated Apr 5, 2025 8:00 AM ET

While Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales did finish the year 5-12 in his first season as an NFL head coach, he did seem to have the team playing good football by the end of the year. They went 2-1 despite having a historically bad defense, and they went 4-5 once he reinserted Bryce Young as the starting quarterback.

Canales had plenty of ups and downs, but his management of the offense, specifically at QB, was good. He got wins he shouldn't have with a defense that literally gave up more points than any other unit in history. Despite that, the coaching power rankings were not kind to him.

RotoBaller ranked him as the 27th coach in the NFL, saying, "Canales had only one year as an offensive coordinator before getting hired as the Panthers head coach last offseason. While Carolina had a 5-12 record in his first year as the head coach, the team played significantly better later in the year."

Canales had to deal with a lot in his first year, but it's no secret that the Panthers took a big swing in hiring someone who'd been an offensive assistant for more than a decade but had just one year calling plays under his belt.

Still, Canales looked like he was the coach of the future for Carolina. He probably deserves to be ranked a little higher than 27th given how well he did down the stretch with essentially one hand tied behind his back, but it's hard to complain too much about a five-win coach being at the bottom of the list.

Canales outranked Shane Steichen, Aaron Glenn, Brian Callahan, Kellen Moore, and Brian Schottenheimer, so he's not the only non-rookie head coach near the bottom of the pile.

This article first appeared on Carolina Panthers on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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