The Carolina Panthers have agreed to hire Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Dave Canales as their new head coach, according to two people familiar with the situation.
Canales has informed the Buccaneers that he is taking the job, although there are still details that need to be finalized before the move is announced, according to the people who spoke to The Associated Press on Thursday on condition of anonymity.
The NFL tweeted the expected hire Thursday, sourcing RapSheet.
The Panthers fired former head coach Frank Reich in November. The team also fired assistant head coach and running backs coach Duce Staley and quarterbacks coach Josh McCown later.
Tepper hired Reich last January to fix one of the league’s worst offenses over the past few seasons and develop Bryce Young, the No. 1 overall pick. Reich came to Charlotte after four years with the Indianapolis Colts. He was fired as head coach of the Colts about year ago after a 3-5-1 start.
Canales, 42, will join the Panthers’ newly promoted general manager and president of football operations Dan Morgan, the NFL reports. He will be the seventh head coach since Tepper took over as owner in 2018.
Canales inherits a Panthers team that went 2-15 last season and does not have a first-round draft pick in 2024.
With the Buccaneers, Canales helped lead an offense that had Baker Mayfield as quarterback and sent Tampa Bay to the NFC Divisional Round of the 2024 NFL Playoffs.
The Buccaneers were eliminated by the Detroit Lions, but Canales impressed many with his innovative play calls and ability to read opposing defense’s schemes. Canales’ year with Tampa Bay was his first-ever NFL coordinator job and helped lead the Buccaneers to a division win in the NFC South with a 9-8 record.
The Buccaneers played Carolina twice in 2023, defeating the Panthers 9-0 in week one, and then 21-18 in week six. Tampa Bay ranked 17th in the NFL in passing yards per game (224.2 YPG) but were last in the NFL with rushing yards per game (88.8 YPG).
In addition to helping Mayfield succeed in the quarterback slot with the Buccaneers, Canales also succeeded in revitalizing quarterback Geno Smith’s career, when he served as quarterback’s coach in 2022 for the Seattle Seahawks.
Canales helped Smith become a Pro Bowl selection for the first time in his career, also aiding Smith to become the Associated Press and Pro Football Writers of America’s Comeback Player of the Year in the NFL.
Canales spent 13 seasons with Seattle, helping the organization garner 10 playoff berths, two conference championships and one Super Bowl title (XLVIII). The highest role he held with Seattle was passing game coordinator from 2020-2021.