Dave Canales feels vindicated in preseason prediction with playoffs in sight

The Carolina Panthers control their own destiny after beating the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a pivotal Week 16 divisional clash. If the Panthers win their final two games they’ll capture the division title for the first time since 2015. And as the team prepares to take on the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, Dave Canales was reminded of a statement he made before the start of the season.

“I don’t think people are going to want to play us,” Canales told reporters back in July. On Friday, with 16 weeks in the books and several impressive wins under his belt, the Panthers head coach discussed his bold prediction.

“I knew what we had in this building from a player standpoint. My question was, how quickly can we become a team? How quickly can we become the 2025 Carolina Panthers? Because our play style, the things that are important to us, the things we believe in, that’s what’s most important. And if we can assemble this group to play really good football on a consistent basis, we’ll be a hard team to deal with, Canales said, per WCNC Charlotte’s Danielle Stein.

Bryce Young led the Panthers to a win over the Buccaneers in Week 16

“I knew that and I wanted our players to know. It was a message for our group, to understand that. Let’s go. This is a new year, we have new challenges in front of us. Let’s attack it with everything we have, all together. And just really try to boost the confidence of a group. There was a bunch of new pieces. Some young players, some veteran players coming from other places. And, how quickly can we find good ball together. That’s been the goal for us. And we’ve got another opportunity in front of us to find our best football,” Canales added.

The Panthers rebounded from Week 15’s disappointing loss to the New Orleans Saints with a massive victory over the Buccaneers. Carolina improved to 8-7 as Bryce Young led the team to a win despite injuring his ankle.

The Panthers beat the Los Angeles Rams back in Week 13. Now the team will take on another NFC West powerhouse Sunday as Carolina hosts the Seahawks. Assuming Tampa Bay wins its Week 17 matchup with the Miami Dolphins, the Panthers will play the Bucs for the division title in the season finale.

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