How fond Seahawks memory molded Panthers HC Dave Canales’ outlook on 2024 NFL Draft

Dave Canales is preparing for his first NFL Draft as a head coach. And as the Panthers leader gets ready to put his stamp on Carolina’s roster this weekend with an influx of young talent, he reflects on the success stories he’s had in the past.

Canales entered the league as a lower level assistant coach for the Seattle Seahawks in 2010. In 2015, he was promoted to wide receivers coach, and that offseason, the Seahawks produced one of his favorite draft memories.

In third round, the Seahawks selected Kansas State wide receiver Tyler Lockett with the 69th overall pick.

Canales’ joy toward the Lockett selection didn’t just stem from the prospect playing the position that he coached. The Panthers head coach, instead, said he appreciated the pick because the entire team had bought into Lockett.

Canales wants to duplicate that collective buy-in as much as possible heading Thursday’s first round.

“I thought it was a really cool thing — and it’s the thing I’ve been looking for with (GM Dan Morgan) and the coaches — is that everybody involved in the process was in love with Tyler Lockett,” Canales said Wednesday. “From the special teams coach — (Lockett) as a kick returner — to the offensive coaches visualizing what we could do with this player in our system, to our scouts and the work that they did to profile the guy. He loves football, he works at his craft. So, I think that was a special moment for me because that was kind of my first pick as a position coach. And then to see how it all came together.”

While fans and football pundits have been quick to point out Canales’ success with bigger receivers like Mike Evans and DK Metcalf, Canales said Tuesday that he just likes great players and noted that those players come in all shapes and sizes. Lockett, who is listed as 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds, serves as proof as he is significantly smaller than Metcalf (6-4, 235) and Evans (6-5, 231).

Canales and Lockett worked together for eight seasons in Seattle, with the wide receiver topping 1,000 receiving yards in four consecutive seasons.

Lockett’s success in Seattle is something the Panthers are hoping to duplicate with their wide receivers in Carolina. But in regards to the draft, Canales wants to make sure he can get complete buy-in on prospects of all positions as much as possible.

While Canales refused to name the prospects that the Panthers are universally enamored with, he did admit there are a few on the list.

“There are a few guys in this draft ... where there’s traction from all sides,” Canales said. “So, all of sudden, there’s like an ‘Oh, all of us really love this dude, so where do we have to take him?’”

Chuba Hubbard still has a chip on his shoulder

Chuba Hubbard is getting used to a new spot on the running back depth chart. For the first time in his career, Hubbard is at the top of the totem pole heading into the heart of the offseason program.

Despite that status, Hubbard’s shoulders remain heavy as the Panthers approach draft weekend. He claims that the chip on his shoulder — despite his 2023 breakout season — isn’t going anywhere.

“I put everything into this,” Hubbard said. “So, that chip only gets bigger.”

Hubbard rushed for 902 yards and five touchdowns last season. He added another 233 yards as a receiver. After wrangling away the starting job from high-priced free-agent addition, Miles Sanders, in Week 6, Hubbard became one of the few bright spots of last year’s 2-15 season.

“In all honesty, I think my confidence, just getting that back was a big thing for me — especially in my body,” Hubbard said. “I think I’ve told some of y’all, with the surgeries and stuff that I’ve dealt with, I’ve kind of varied where my body’s been. Some people may look out on the field and be like, ‘He’s got this and that going on,’ but it was really just a lot of health issues and stuff like that. So, I think just getting up to building a solid base, and putting it all together, I think that was big for me.”

Still, the 2021 fourth-round pick knew he wanted to improve his game this offseason as he prepared for a third head coach in four years.

“I’m trying to get better in everything,” Hubbard said. “I want to be one of the best tools for this team. I want to win — I want to win in Carolina. So how that looks — me catching the ball, pass blocking, running the ball — I need to do my best. So, whatever it takes.”

Morgan, the team’s first-year GM, said at the NFL Scouting Combine in February that Hubbard will get the first shot at the top job this offseason, despite Sanders carrying around a guaranteed $4 million salary. Hubbard has taken that outlook in stride, and he has applauded Sanders for his professionalism and friendship, despite the veteran’s rocky road in Carolina so far.

“He’s always been a good teammate to me through everything,” Hubbard said. “I got the ultimate respect for him for that. I love him, that’s my dawg.”

Quick hits

▪ For a second consecutive workout, pass rusher K’Lavon Chaisson, cornerback Troy Hill and kicker Eddy Piñeiro were absent from the field. The veteran minicamp is voluntary and players aren’t obligated to attend. Players like safety Xavier Woods, pass rusher D.J. Wonnum and guard Chandler Zavala were seen on the field but the trio didn’t participate in drills. Cornerback A.J. Parker had his right hand taped up. Outside linebacker Amare Barno, who attended Tuesday’s session, was not on the field on Wednesday.

▪ On Tuesday, wideout Diontae Johnson admitted that when he first met Canales, he didn’t know that he was the head coach of the Panthers. The duo, along with others, went to dinner at Steak 48 to get to know each other. Canales, on Wednesday, laughed about the revelation, and he said it wasn’t the first time someone mistook him for a lower level assistant. A prospect at the scouting combine made a similar mistake, and the prospect pointed to offensive line coach Joe Gilbert when asked to identify the head coach.

▪ Veteran wide receiver Adam Thielen noted that Johnson — the team’s new presumed top receiver — brings a swagger and confidence to the position. He also noted that Johnson offers the versatility to play multiple wide receiver spots.

▪ Thielen also said that he is focused on becoming more versatile and wants to be able to take the top off the defense with speed, while still working his typical intermediate attack. He said he has spoken with Arizona Cardinals legend Larry Fitzgerald about having success as an older wideout. Thielen, who turns 34 in August, also used Hall of Fame WR Jerry Rice as an example of a playmaker who was a standout later in his career.

▪ Center Austin Corbett addressed his notable position switch Wednesday after practice. He noted that he had been trained as the emergency center in practice throughout his NFL career, beginning with the Cleveland Browns in 2018. In fact, Corbett said his head coach at Nevada, Brian Polian, mentioned to him early on his college career that he would eventually need to move to center because of his intelligence. Corbett joked that the other linemen would say he talked too much as a guard, so now he is going to get to make the protection calls at center. He said he had no rust snapping the ball during the week of work.