Watch: Bucs OC Dave Canales gets emotional discussing team

Tampa Bay Buccaneers OC Dave Canales Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Watch: Dave Canales gets emotional discussing Todd Bowles, Buccaneers

By Zac Wassink | Last updated 12/21/23

Tampa Bay Buccaneers first-year offensive coordinator Dave Canales became emotional while discussing head coach Todd Bowles and the club during Thursday's news conference.

"First and foremost, I want to make coach Bowles proud," Canales explained, as shared by the Buccaneers' and JoeBucsFan websites. "I want to make him right…[He is] just a guy who believed in me and gave me a shot. For me, it's about grinding, working hard, and trying to prove him right. (General manager) Jason Licht, too, and the whole group – it means a lot to me, it's important."

#Bucs Dave Canales emotionally talked about how much it means to him that the Bucs and Todd Bowles took a chance on him at OC.

He wants to do right by Bowles and make him proud.

Canales also wants to build something to where everyone can say “This is who we are.” pic.twitter.com/rHGtnwOXJ6
— Matt Matera (@matty4_matera) December 21, 2023

Canales previously served as the quarterbacks coach with the Seattle Seahawks and was credited for helping Geno Smith earn Associated Press Comeback Player of the Year Award honors for the 2022 season. Playing under Canales, Tampa Bay QB Baker Mayfield has gone from being a signal-caller on a one-year "prove it" contract to a starter said to be offering more to the Buccaneers than what Tom Brady gave the 2022 edition of the club.

Smith signed a three-year contract with the Seahawks this past offseason that ultimately could become a one-year deal

"[There are] a lot of parallels there," Canales said about Smith and Mayfield. "It really speaks to the character of those two guys – the belief in themselves, the belief in their abilities, the people around them who are speaking life into them. While I know some people might use negative narratives to help fuel them, I think both of those guys are aware of those things and so they both have that real chip on their shoulder. You love having guys in that type of position who can handle that – some guys can't handle that. That's part of it, but it's not the whole story. The whole story is their belief in themselves."

As of late Thursday afternoon, oddschecker listed Mayfield as a +1400 longshot to win the Comeback Player of the Year Award for the ongoing season. At that same time, the ESPN Football Power Index gave 7-7 Tampa Bay a 68.9% chance to make the playoffs.

The Buccaneers host the 8-6 Jacksonville Jaguars this coming Sunday.

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