Buccaneers fans, I really didn’t think this would happen, but it did. It was rather obvious the Panthers wanted Dave Canales bad. But I thought he would pull a Ben Johnson and stay another year to solidify himself as an OC. This throws everything into question. Who’s the new OC? Does Baker Mayfield come back? Will Jason Licht and the Glazers keep Todd Bowles? I’m panicking over here man. I thought we were in for a relatively drama-free offseason and then this happens.
To look at the raw numbers, Dave Canales did do a pretty good job. He averaged 20.5 ppg, 20th in the league. Doesn’t sound super impressive, but he did improve upon the 2022 season with a roster that you can argue looked worse on paper. He still didn’t do great with the run game since it was 32nd, but again, it did improve under him.
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But these numbers are not the reason why he was hired. There are a ton of coordinators who can say they had better seasons. The reason why the Panthers got him is that he is a leader. You can tell by his press conferences. Everyone loved him. As I talked about before, part of the reason we took a chance on him is because he interviewed so well. Without being there obviously, I think it’s safe to say the Panthers were blown away by it as well. This might be one of those cases where he is a better head coach than a coordinator, although he did make strides as a coordinator.
Despite Canales flaws, this loss is a blow to the Bucs organization. It seemed like Baker for the first time in his career would have continuity. But he will once again have a new OC. And then there’s the question of if the Bucs will resign Baker. Baker does not have this great year without Canales. I will answer all these questions soon, but not now. I need food. And a nap.
Make sure you check out Devin’s blog at cannoncrunch.wordpress.com.
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