Dave Canales credits Buccaneers' Todd Bowles for Panthers opportunity

During a recent appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio, new Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales explained how he was able to grow during his one season working as offensive coordinator under Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles thanks to the culture built by Bowles. 

"Just the amount of confidence and trust he gave me going into those games early in the season, he could tell I was nervous," Canales said about Bowles, per the JoeBucsFan website. "He could tell it mattered to me and I really wanted to do well. And he would just quietly come up and just say, 'Hey, let it rip. I got your back. Let’s go for it.'" 

Individuals within the Buccaneers upset senior advisor Bruce Arians by parting ways with offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich and other assistants in January 2023, less than one full month before quarterback Tom Brady retired for good. 

Tampa Bay hired Canales and later acquired Baker Mayfield to serve as Brady's replacement atop the depth chart. As a result, many thought Tampa Bay would finish this past season as a last-place club en route to Bowles and Co. losing their jobs. 

Canales instead turned Mayfield into a Comeback Player of the Year candidate who guided the Buccaneers to a division title and a playoff victory. While the two coaches will battle it out this fall as NFC South foes, it's clear Canales will appreciate the support he received from Bowles for years to come. 

“He was never trying to control, saying, 'Hey, you need to do this or that,'" Canales added about Bowles. "He was like, 'Just let it rip and I got your back.' For me, that just really freed me up to learn the lessons I needed to learn. And then you make those mistakes early on and you fail forward fast, you know. That’s kind of the culture that he created there when I was with him for just that one season." 

Canales will be hoping the lessons he takes from his brief Tampa Bay stint will help him mold Carolina's Bryce Young into a top-tier quarterback after Young endured a rough rookie season working under a different staff.