Dave Canales of the Panthers is “fired-up” about starting work with Bryce Young.

The Carolina Panthers, who had previously served as the offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, announced on January 25 that they would be signing Dave Canales as their next head coach. This marks the beginning of a new era for the team in the upcoming season. Additionally, he expressed in an interview with ESPN’s David Newton that he is “fired up” to collaborate with quarterback Bryce Young.

As I prepared for the interview by watching Bryce and reviewing my notes from his [pre-draft] evaluation, I became more and more nervous. Canales stated, “I just got more and more excited about the chance to have this incredible skill. And that’s the man. When you have a quarterback who can salvage the franchise, he’s the one you should all be talking about. And I became quite thrilled about that.

Canales’ six-year contract with Carolina is evidence of the team’s confidence in him to not only guide the Panthers to victory but also to support Young, their franchise quarterback who had, to put it mildly, a forgettable rookie campaign. The former No. 1 overall pick from the University of Alabama completed the previous season with 2,877 yards, 11 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions through the air.

There’s always space for development, but it was only one season, and the bar was high for a first-round selection. There is now pressure on Canales and Young to make their relationship work, even with the quarterback who was drafted after him, C.J. Stroud, performing admirably with the Houston Texans.

Although the subject of the league’s shorter quarterbacks has always generated controversy, Canales has assisted in the development of a few “undersized” signal-callers. He collaborated with Russell Wilson and Geno Smith while serving as the quarterbacks coach and pass game coordinator for the Seattle Seahawks in a few different seasons between 2018 and 2022. Additionally, he just assisted Baker Mayfield in having his greatest season with the Buccaneers.