Finding words, or at least any positive ones, for the Carolina Panthers is not an easy task right now. But head coach Dave Canales will try.
Canales’ regular-season debut in his new position didn’t go as planned, as the Panthers were absolutely thumped by the host New Orleans Saints on Sunday. The embarrassing 47-10 loss included an abysmal performance from second-year quarterback Bryce Young, who was the primary focus of a busy offseason for Canales and Carolina.
So, what now?
“Yeah, just make it about the basics,” Canales said of his message to Young. “And just look at each play as isolated incidents. Look at the play. What was the breakdown? Was it timing? Was it footwork? Was it protection? There’s a lot of factors that go in. And I think that if you can be objective about looking at the breakdown of the play itself, it allows you to improve.”
Young didn’t improve from his rough rookie season, where he threw for 179.8 yards per game and just 11 touchdowns. The former No. 1 overall pick connected on 13 of his 30 passes for 161 yards and two interceptions in his 2024 debut.
One of those two picks came on the very first play for the Panthers offense, as Young missed his intended target in wideout Diontae Johnson and hit the hands of Saints cornerback Will Harris instead. Canales was asked about the pick.
“I thought he had good space,” Canales said of Johnson. “I gotta watch the film. I thought he had good space. It looked like a high throw. Post safety was sitting there kinda in position for it. But Diontae had press. I thought he did a good job of separating there. It was just a matter of me-to-you factor.”
Well, there wasn’t a lot of Young-to-Johnson factor this afternoon—as the former Pro Bowl receiver finished with two receptions for 19 yards.
