Dave Canales defends the critical play-call that helped derail the Panthers’ golden opportunity in Week 18 loss to the Buccaneers
Missed opportunities might have ended the Panthers’ season on Saturday.
The Carolina Panthers end the regular season dropping back-to-back games after Saturday’s loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, but hopes for the postseason aren’t over yet.
With a win by the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday over the New Orleans Saints, the Panthers can still clinch playoffs and host a wild card game thanks to the fail-safe in the back pocket.
But, when it came to deciding the NFC South on their own terms, the Panthers dropped the ball in some gotta-have-it-situations. The most glaring mistake came early in the fourth quarter when Carolina squandered a scoring opportunity, fumbling the ball on first down at the 20-yard-line.
Dave Canales defends the decision to call the flea flicker despite the sloppy conditions
It wasn’t just the result of the play that was frustrating for the Panthers, it was also the play-call itself. The weather conditions played a major role in this game and in a critical situation, head coach Dave Canales tried to trick the Bucs’ defense calling a flea flicker.
But, when running back Rico Dowdle got the ball and attempted to toss it back, he slipped on the field and the ball instead rolled back to quarterback Bryce Young and was the ball was recovered by the Bucs.
“An aggressive call,” Canales explained after the loss. “We knew they were going to play single high right there. Rico slipped on the exchange and we took a shot right there. I like the call, I like the opportunity that it presented us right there in the red zone to take advantage of it. We didn’t get that done.”
Instead of potentially making it a one-score game, it became a wasted possession for the Panthers’ offense. But, that one play isn’t the whole reason Carolina lost that game. The Panthers were 1-8 on third down and struggled to contain the Bucs’ offense.
Panthers learned a tough lesson the hard way and hopefully the team can get another chance
“These are the championship moments that we live for,” Canales added. “That we prepare for. That we talk about. To not be able to get that done tonight, to not be able to play our best football in these moments, certainly that’s what we’re all disappointed about.”
If this is truly it for the Panthers, it wasn’t a disappointing season by any means. Carolina proved a lot of people wrong this season and learned a lot about themselves in the process. Even after this loss, the Panthers still can have an important takeaway to learn from.
“We don’t ever have to feel this way again,” Canales said. “We can build from this. We have to take the next steps to make sure that we show up with a championship mindset.”
Whether that lesson is applied in the playoffs or next season remains to be seen and we’ll find out on Sunday with the result of the Falcons vs. Saints game.
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