JUST IN: SEATTLE SEAHAWKS ASSISTANT COACH THAT HAVE JUST SIGNED IN MINUTE AGO……..

On Thursday, the Carolina Panthers selected Dave Canales, a youthful, talented offensive coordinator, to be their new head coach. Though he receives a lot of credit for his outstanding first season in Tampa Bay as offensive coordinator, he spent the bulk of his NFL career working in various positions in Seattle. Before departing to join the Buccaneers in 2022, he worked there for 12 seasons as their wide receivers coach, quarterbacks coach, passing game coordinator, and quarterbacks coach once again. He began his tenure there in 2010. There, he coached with a number of legendary players and went on to win one Super Bowl and play in another. During that time, I dug into their coaching staffs and discovered several well-known figures he might consult.

I’ll provide their names along with my thoughts on how they could fit into the Panthers’ 2024 plans. I skipped over a lot of the defensive analysis since it appears the Panthers want to retain those coordinators through 2023, if current defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero is successful in securing the final head coaching position in the NFL. With a few modest adjustments, I think this indicates the defensive staff is well constructed.

The date is January 14, 2012. We are in San Francisco at Candlestick Park. The 49ers need a touchdown with 14 seconds remaining, down three, and facing a third down to maintain their hopes of making the playoffs without having to go to OT. In the meanwhile, the Saints may draw a conclusion from this and move on to the NFC Championship Game. We need to look back in time to comprehend how we got here and to fully appreciate what this moment signifies.

Darell Bevell (offensive coordinator)

From 2011 to 2017, Bevell worked closely with Canales as the offensive coordinator for the Seahawks for six seasons. Ultimately, he was let go after the 2017 campaign. In that period, he has worked for the Lions and Jaguars as an offensive coordinator and as a temporary head coach. He is now the Miami Dolphins’ passing game coordinator and quarterback coach.

Although current offensive coordinator Thomas Brown hasn’t been fired by the Panthers, they have given him permission to apply for other openings, and throughout the hiring process, he was given the opportunity to meet with head coaches as well. Canales would obviously have a lot of impact from his experience with Bevell in Seattle, even though he would undoubtedly control a lot of what the Panthers do on offense and probably call his own plays. I could definitely see Canales choosing to bring him on as the next offensive coordinator to help carry out his offensive philosophy, but they may bring him on in another position.

Brian Schottenheimer (offensive coordinator)

After Bevell was fired in 2018, Schottenheimer was appointed to the position of OC in Seattle for the period of 2018–2020. After a fantastic season for their offense (sans the playoffs, of course), he is currently the offensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys. Since Brian would not be receiving a promotion in this case, unlike Bevell, it would be a lateral move. This implies that Dallas could simply cancel the interview if they wanted to keep him. I could see the Cowboys looking at other options, though, as they are now in a bit of a flux after suffering another playoff loss and are not making the kind of development that owner Jerry Jones would want to see. In addition, his name is Brian, and in any organization or sport, you can never have too many of those.

Mike Solari (offensive line)

Since 1987, Solari has worked as a professional offensive line coach (with occasional stints in various capacities), stopping at Alabama along route. During his tenure as the offensive line coach for the Seahawks from 2018 to 2021, he got the opportunity to work with Canales. Solari is now the Dallas Cowboys offensive line coach. Given that the Panthers kept James Campen as their offensive line coach throughout the Frank Reich scandal, it is possible that Campen may remain, but Canales may use this as a chance to bring in a familiar face.

Carl Smith (quarterbacks or assistant of some kind)

75-year-old Carl Smith seemed to have been comfortable in his new position as an assistant head coach or coach of quarterbacks. Although he spent eight years working directly behind Canales in Seattle as a QB coach or assistant HC, he has been all around the league. I believe the main goal of this move is to provide Canales with an experienced mentor who is acquainted with his body of work. The Panthers fired Josh McCown as quarterback coach, hence the post is presently empty. Perhaps David Tepper will open his wallet and make it worthwhile for Smith to go.

Brad Idzik (WR coach or offensive coordinator)

I believe you can just mark this as “probably going to happen.” Idzik was Canales’ assistant wide receivers coach in Seattle from 2019 to 2020. In 2022, he returned to that position after taking a job in 2021 as assistant quarterback coach and offensive quality control. In 2023, he moved to Tampa Bay to work as the wide receiver coach, following Canales. Idzik is regarded as Canales’ “right hand man” and they are pals, according to a PewterReport.com article. I’m very confident this guy will work as a coach with the Panthers eventually, the only issue is to what extent. Canales may create a spot as an offensive coordinator, passing game coordinator, or assistant head coach, or he might take a lateral move.

What are your opinions, Panthers supporters? Is there anyone you think Dave Canales should go after for help?