Dave Canales keeps it simple, brushing aside outside scenarios ahead of the Panthers’ must-win game in Week 18
The Panthers are focused on punching a ticket to the playoffs before the train leaves the station.
The Carolina Panthers, due to their own doing, have put themselves in a corner going into Week 18 and fittingly, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers have also done the same exact thing.
The two teams are essentially in a box and only one team is making it out alive on Saturday. The last man standing clinches a final spot in the NFC playoffs and will host a game in the wild card round.
There is, however, one caveat to that following the Atlanta Falcons shocking win over the Los Angeles Rams on “Monday Night Football” in Week 17 that gives the Panthers one last fail-safe to clinch the playoffs, even with a loss on Saturday. However, that’s not something the team wants to even think about right now.
Dave Canales keeps the main thing the main thing when asked about outside scenario
“We’re aware of all those scenarios and it’s a pretty simple path. We have to handle business and win the game,” Panthers head coach Dave Canales told reporters on Tuesday. “That’s got to be our focus, first and foremost. A team that I really respect, that we just played a couple weeks ago.
“We have to approach this thing like we didn’t just play them. Don’t take anything for granted, make sure we’re on the details. All of the other scenarios will play out how they will. I was watching the game last night, I watch every game on Monday night, and this one has implications. But, at the same time, the focus has to be there for us to be able to handle business and play our best ball.”
Well said and simply put by Canales. Having the ace in the back pocket is nice, but it’s not something you should ever plan to use. That’s why it’s called a fail-safe.
The Panthers need to go into this game and treat it like it’s a must-win, as obvious as that sounds. Everything needs to be left on the field, similar to how things went in Week 16 the last time these two teams faced off and the Panthers came away with a 23-20 win at home.
As for the other outside noise about whether this team deserves a playoff spot or not based on their record, you can never overlook or underestimate any team that makes it into the dance. And that’s something Canales learned first-hand.
Dave Canales has coaching experience being an underdog in the playoffs, saying Carolina gets in
Back in 2010, the Seattle Seahawks were in a similar position the Panthers are now. They weren’t an NFC powerhouse by any means, but did just enough to take advantage of a bad division and host a playoff game despite a 7-9 record in the regular season.
In the wild card round, Seattle got a home win over Drew Brees and the 11-5 New Orleans Saints thanks to the “Beastquake” by Marshawn Lynch, a play that will be remembered forever. On that coaching staff, under Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll, was a lot younger Canales, serving as the team’s offensive quality control coach. And he still remembers an important lesson from that season.
“What I learned about that group is you just keep playing football and there’s a way to win every game,” Canales explained. “You don’t make a judgement about the game, when things happen in a series, you don’t make a judgement about the season based on what happened in the early part or middle part. You just got to keep playing ball because scenarios play out and all of a sudden you’re there. There’s this hopefulness that you have to keep, to keep trying to find your best football.”
In Carolina, there’s a saying for that and it’s the spirit of this franchise: “Keep Pounding.” That’s what the Panthers need to continue to do.
And even if they come up short against the Buccaneers on Saturday, they can still have one last hope on Sunday to potentially sneak in and keep the season alive.
Carolina Panthers News
Panthers actually have a highly unlikely fail-safe that can help Carolina clinch the NFC South even with a Week 18 loss to the Bucs
It’s not a scenario Carolina wants to have, but it can certainly help.
