Panthers' Poor Coach-QB Duo Ranking Misses Mark on Where Struggle Lies

The Carolina Panthers brought in Dave Canales to turn things around for Bryce Young in 2024. His work with Geno Smith and Baker Mayfield led the Panthers to believe he could "fix" Young after a brutal 2023.

Their vision was a young pair of exciting partners at coach and quarterback, so the team could continue to rise together. While they have technically risen in the two years since, it hasn't exactly been like anyone hoped.

And according to SI's Matt Verderame, the Panthers have the 27th-best coach/QB duo in the NFL, which is actually lower than it was a year ago. That's wrong, and the ranking of both Young and Canales is wrong, too.

Panthers earn low QB-coach ranking that's wrong on all fronts

Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) reacts in the fourth quarter in an NFC Wild Card | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

According to Matt Verderame, the Panthers have the 27th-best pairing of coach and quarterback in the NFL. With that logic, it's unfathomable that the Panthers made the playoffs last year, even at 8-9. One of the parties, considering the defense was still pretty bad last year, has to be somewhat decent.

Per Verderame, it's Canales. His ranking among head coaches is 20th, which isn't even that good. Still, the insider had praise for Canales after just two years on the job.

"[He] is a terrific up-and-coming coach. The Panthers won 24 games over the five years before Canales arrived, and it took him two years to win the NFC South. This, despite being saddled with a receiving corps that had one player amass more than 400 yards," he wrote.

Young was ranked 30th, which is egregiously low (more on that in a bit). "A major part of the problem is Young... He’s thrown for 3,000 yards and 20 touchdowns just once, and although it was last season, he still finished with the 28th-best EPA (-40.8) behind Tua Tagovailoa, who was so bad that the Dolphins ate $55.4 million in dead cap just to release him this offseason," Verderame concluded.

This seems to imply that the coach is carrying the quarterback, and we're not so sure that's the case. Young has bailed out Canales on several different occasions with his playmaking out of structure. Canales' play-calling left a ton to be desired, and Young made up for that despite poor support.

There's a criticism of the Panthers that arose last year. They were inconsistent from week to week. The blame was placed on Young for being up-and-down. Shouldn't at least some of the blame go to the coach, too?

Young has been criticized for doing this, with a four-game stretch last year as evidence. He threw for 448 yards and three touchdowns in a win over the Falcons. Then, he had 169 yards and two picks against a bad pass defense in San Francisco.

Then, he dropped three touchdowns in a huge upset win (two coming on fourth down) over the Rams. Next, he dropped 163 yards and just one touchdown in a loss to the last-place Saints. Why didn't he just play consistently?

Carolina Panthers head coach Dave Canales on the sidelines in the fourth quarter | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Well, there's a coaching problem there, too. Against the Falcons, Young went off. After, Canales seemed intent on airing it out only and refusing to utilize a running game that was gashing the 49ers. He put the entire game on Young, which made them one-dimensional and easy to defend.

Then, after that, he dominated the Rams on clutch downs and beat Matthew Stafford only to follow it up with a seeming dud against the Saints. However, the Saints have a good defense, and Carolina once again couldn't/didn't run the ball. Plus, his 96.4 passer rating proves that game was not as bad as it's made out to be.

If Young has the talent to put on performances like he did versus the Falcons and Rams, then it's up to the coaching staff to determine how best to draw that out each week. Canales didn't do that. The NFL is very coaching-dependant, but when it's the Panthers, all the blame goes to Young and none to Canales.

Plus, are we really sure the Panthers have a worse QB-coach combo than the New Orleans Saints? Based on nine games, when the NFL had no tape of Tyler Shough? Or the Tennesee Titans with a retread coach and a QB who is coming off a dreadful rookie season?

The Atlanta Falcons are an egregious one, too. Kevin Stefanski was fired by the awful Cleveland Browns, and Michael Penix Jr. may not even have a job anymore. It's clear that the Panthers are woefully misunderstood here.

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