INDIANAPOLIS — It wasn't that long ago Dave Canales was the new kid on the block, the rookie head coach at his first NFL combine, wide-eyed and eager to make his mark on a team. Now, heading into year three, he's one of the old heads in a room that saw remarkable coaching turnover this offseason.

So it was Canales being asked what his advice would be to a first-time head coach—"You feel like you don't have time to do everything; it will all get done."—and his brain being picked for how new coordinators can settle into roles so different than what they've done before—"Really, it's just the work that goes into it, the grind, and trusting the serenity of your office with a cup of coffee and knowing that those decisions will be the best."

Canales' progression as a head coach has also been parallel with quarterback Bryce Young's progression as a starter in the NFL. So while the coach has quickly become a touchstone for others in the profession, so too has Young as an example of patience and developing a young passer.

The result in 2025 was a performance that saw Young finish with his best completion percentage yet (63.6 percent), throw for a career-best 3,011 yards, and post a career-best 23-11 touchdown-to-interception ratio, all while helping lead the Panthers to their first playoff game since 2017.

While it was Young's third year in the league, it was his second year within Canales' system, and that is where the coach saw the growth come alive. His quarterback trusted the system, according to Canales, and that allowed him to make decisions within it.

"Really just watching him own concepts, the feedback is really where it's starting to become powerful, having conversations," noted Canales on Tuesday while speaking at the Combine.

"With him, we go through our game plan days, our checkpoints, he and I talking on the phone, making sure we have the things that get him excited and that he feels confident in executing and really starting to—the more vocal he gets with what he likes, what he doesn't like, the closer and closer we get to a real identity of what we're doing.

"And while those things kind of change with the personnel, with the players that we have, that's the mastery that we're after and the more he involves himself and what we're doing there, the more powerful it gets for us."

It all means that during their end-of-season meetings, and the ones that have taken place since, Canales' directive for his quarterback this offseason was simple: trust what led to this season and let it grow.

"Just continue to pour into our system, our concepts, the ownership of it," said Canales. "I love the strides we've taken in terms of the operation, how he gets us up there, makes great calls, fixes our protection problems, finding solutions in areas where we've talked about to take advantage of coverages, takes advantage of different fronts for run plays, and just wanting Bryce to continue to grow in the ownership of those things.

"Because there are more opportunities for Bryce to affect the game at the line of scrimmage, and I want to continue to build off of that."

It was something he saw the quarterback really starting to do towards the end of the season, particularly in the wild card game against the Rams on a 52-yard deep pass to Jalen Coker that set up a touchdown.

"He saw a particular coverage and got us to an explosive play to Jalen Coker down the field, and it was the study," explained Canales. "It was the understanding. It was getting out of the huddle in a timely fashion and being able to seize a moment. I want more moments like that for Bryce."

Next steps for Xavier Legette

Receiver Xavier Legette has openly experienced highs and lows during his first two years, with the latter unfortunately becoming more of the focus this past season.

The former first-rounder finished with 35 receptions for 363 yards and three touchdowns this past season. He did miss two games with a hamstring injury, but there were also drops, multiple games with one reception, and one game with no receptions.

The Panthers know an outside narrative has developed around their receiver. But they also know what he can bring on the field.

"Xavier, he's hungry," promised general manager Dan Morgan on Tuesday. "He's hungry to go out there and play his best, and not to prove anybody wrong, but to prove himself right.

"I know he's motivated. He's going to put the work in this offseason like he always does. I'm excited for him. I think he's definitely taken a beating from an outside perspective, but we have full belief in him, and I'm excited for him and his future."

Canales has publicly supported Legette over and over in the past few months. He did so again in Indianapolis, remaining confident that his young receiver would continue to improve and make an impact.

"I say this all the time about Xavier, but his work ethic, when I see guys working hard, that usually works," said Canales."And watching him grind, watching him attack it with everything he has is why I have confidence that Xavier will take another step this year."

Capers moves on, but presence will be felt

When Panthers players and coaches walk into Bank of America Stadium every day, they pass under towering maple trees that create a canopy over the entire area. It keeps the lot cool in the summer, alive in the spring, and adds an explosion of color in the fall. It is an oasis in Uptown Charlotte.

And when Dave Canales walks through it each day, he thinks of Dom Capers.

"A guy who started the Panthers and who has the ability to walk around the parking lot and say, I remember when we planted these trees," Canales said of the original Panthers head coach. "And you know, they tower over us now and cover us, which is really symbolic for how he's covered us as a staff, the development of our defensive staff."

Canales confirmed on Tuesday that Capers would be joining the Cleveland Browns this coming season as a senior defensive assistant, leaving his role as a senior defensive assistant with the Panthers.

After a successful expansion effort here (the best first-year record in league history, the NFC Championship Game in 1996), Capers went on to have a storied career as a head coach and defensive coordinator for teams across the league before returning to Charlotte and the Panthers once again in 2023. He spent the past three seasons as a senior defensive assistant for Charlotte, helping Ejiro Evero improve the defense and assisting Dave Canales as he stepped into a head-coaching role for the first time.

Now that he will be with the Browns, the developmentally minded staff will turn to younger defensive coaches, asking them to step up and take over presentations, concept meetings, and more.

"Coach Dom leaving us creates a lot of opportunity for coaches to step up into new roles," explained Canales. "I don't want to get into the specifics of what those roles will be, but these are guys that learned from coach Dom, especially with Ejiro, starting with him, the influence he's had on him and the rest of the coaching staff to be able to build our defense up and these are guys that I really trust and I'm excited about where we're going."

More responsibility for Mike Bercovici

As the Panthers adjust roles on their offensive staff this offseason, Dave Canales also wants to see Mike Bercovici take more responsibility this year as a passing game coordinator.

"Just watching the care that he has for what we're doing and understanding that giving him the pass game coordinator title comes with responsibility and expanding his horizons," answered Canales as to why it was important to give Bercovici the new title.

"He took over third down last year and was also involved in some of our pass play things," continued Canales. "And the general trajectory is just to get eyes on the whole pass game too."

Bercovici first arrived in Charlotte in 2023 with a rookie Bryce Young. When the staff turned over with the Canales hiring, Bercovici was the only offensive staff member retained. His progression with the quarterback has been a huge part of the Panthers' recent success, according to Canales.

"He's got a unique connection with Bryce, too. He was here before we got here, and they have a really unique relationship, and I believe he understands what Bryce likes, the different things that he might want to see, questions he might have, and it really kind of streamlines the information," explained Canales.

"So that's a really critical position for us and a critical role for Mike, and I was excited to give him that promotion."