Second-year Panthers wide receiver Adam Thielen is like many Carolina fans this offseason. The former Vikings star is counting on a new head coach, Dave Canales, to turn the starting of quarterback Bryce Young‘s career around, and in turn, improve the Panthers’ record. This week on the Rich Eisen Show, Thielen explained why he believes the team hired Canales specifically, over some of the other candidates out there – including Bill Belichick.
“I think that’s why they hired him (for Young), I don’t think they beat around the bush with that,” Thielen said. “This is what Coach Canales’ strengths are. He’s our guy, Bryce. We’ve invested a lot in him. Guys love Bryce, who he is as a person and who he can be as a player. That was the reason for the hire. There was a why behind that, which is great. That goes to the GM and the owner. That is their mindset too.
“There was intentionality behind who we hired. Who do we have as a team, who do we have as a quarterback? They said let’s hire the best fit for that. It’s cool to see intentionality. The longer you’re around, the more you understand the importance of intentionality.
As an offensive coordinator, Canales had a hand in re-shaping the careers of both Seahawks QB Geno Smith and former Panthers quarterback Baker Mayfield in Tampa Bay. That is exactly what Carolina is hoping he can do with their young quarterback this year and into the future.
Thielen praises Young for his maturity in rookie season
Young didn’t have a lot of success with the Panthers in his first year. That fact was made glaringly more obvious by his counterpart CJ Stroud‘s impressive start with the Texans. Despite the former first-overall pick’s rookie performance, Thielen saw signs from his quarterback that made him believe he has the capacity for leading the team.
“I think what he really showed is his maturity over the year,” Thielen said earlier this offseason. “I think his ability at times to just be very honest in front of the room and say, ‘Hey, this is what I’m not doing very well and this is what I need to get better at and please hold me accountable,’ I thought was really impressive for a young guy.
“His maturity level over the season was really cool to see. And his ability to handle adversity. I don’t know how much adversity Bryce has had over his football career, and to handle the amount of adversity he did, to show up every week, week in, week out, put his head down and work, try to lead to the best of his ability was really impressive, and what makes me excited about Year 2 with him.”
Thielen, Young, Canales and the rest of the Panthers hit the field in Charlotte next month for training camp. Report date for veterans is July 23, with rookies checking in on July 19.
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