Where Do The Buccaneers Go If Dave Canales Leaves For The Carolina Panthers?

There are a couple of options for the Buccaneers to consider if Dave Canales is hired away.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers offense was a breath of fresh air this season compared to last year's monstrosity under Byron Leftwich. Head coach Todd Bowles interviewed 10 different candidates after he let Leftwich go after the 2022 season until he hired Dave Canales to be his offensive coordinator. 

From the moment he spoke, there was something about the way Canales communicated that was refreshing. He was positive, upbeat, and candid with reporters not shying away from the tough questions and always having an answer to the best of his ability. 

The offense saw an uptick in production and the Bucs made the playoffs for a fourth straight season and won the NFC South for their third consecutive year. Tampa Bay took a gamble on quarterback Baker Mayfield and under Canales' guidance had one of, if not the best seasons of his career. 

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Head coach Todd Bowels thought Canales had a great year and was pleased with the way he managed the team and got his guys to work while implementing his system. 

“I thought he had a great year,' Bowles said. "I really thought he did a heck of a job coming in the first time out, coming in with a new quarterback and four out of five starting offensive linemen and putting his system in [and] working with what he had with the cap money we had and dead money, not giving him too many more pieces to add. He had some pieces here, but working the way he did, getting to know these guys and figuring out how to get these guys open in the pass game, how to get the run game better, and those coaches working as a whole together… and Dave was the spearhead of that and he did a heck of a job this year for his first year out.”

Now sure there were some maddening times with play sequencing and commitment to a floundering run game but things started to turn around towards the end of the season for the first-time play caller. As such, the Bucs players and staff are looking to build upon last year's success with Canales, though they could soon be starting from scratch again.

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Canales is set to have his second interview with divisional rival Carolina Panthers on Wednesday and is a strong candidate for the job. He previously met with the team last week on a virtual call but this time will meet with the Panthers brass in person. 

The Bucs OC has deep ties with the Panthers' new general manager Dan Morgan, with whom he worked in Seattle. The two won a Super Bowl together and went to another. Canales was the wide receivers coach when Morgan was the assistant director of pro personnel and then the quarterbacks coach when Morgan moved up into the director of pro personnel position.  

Canales shares the same upbeat personality and some of the philosophies as former boss Pete Carrol whom Morgan worked closely with. It's not a lock he will get the job but the familiarity does provide a leg up so to speak in the Panthers head coaching search. The Athletic's Joe Person, who covers the Panther exclusively, says that Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson remains the top choice. There is a chance Canales will end up getting the job. Especially if Johnson decides to coach elsewhere, in Washington, or remains with the Lons. 

What Do The Bucs Do If Canales Leaves?

So what if Canales gets the Panthers job? Who would become the next offensive coordinator for the Buccaneers?

The Bucs have a few in-house candidates they could consider in quarterbacks coach Thad Lewis and possibly assistant head coach and run game coordinator Harold Goodwin. Though Bowles said they would also look outside the building as well. 

“We would have to [have an interview process]," Bowles said. "We’ve got a lot of qualified guys here and there’s some qualified guys outside. We’ll see.”

Of the in-house candidates, Lewis would make the most sense. He has experience in both Arians' system and Canales' and could marry the two without being much shift in the offense's growth. It would allow the team to carry over continuity from what they accomplished this season and the players and staff are fond of him. 

However, it would be a meteoric rise for the Lewis who was a first-time quarterbacks coach just this season. He spent the two seasons prior in the role of assistant wide receivers coach and only joined the staff in the 2020 season as a representative of the Bill Walsh coaching fellow program.

Prior to that, his only coaching experience came in 2018 and 2019 as an offensive analyst at UCLA under Chip Kelly. And while Goodwin has been around forever and has a close relationship with Bowles, it seems unlikely he would become a strong candidate to succeed Canales. 

Instead, if the Bucs don't promote Lewis look for another coordinator search this offseason. It took Bowles ten candidates the last go around to find the right fit and person who wanted to come here and it might be another exhausting search for the Bucs head coach. 

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You can follow JC Allen on Twitter @JCAllenNFL.

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