Panthers HC Dave Canales explains why he hasn’t made a decision on starting QB in Week 10
Dave Canales declined to name a Week 10 starting quarterback on Monday.
The Carolina Panthers’ head coach said he still has a lot to consider when it comes to deciding between Bryce Young and Andy Dalton.
Young started the 23-22 win against the New Orleans Saints as Dalton nursed a sprained right thumb on his throwing hand. But Canales said the position at the top of the QB depth chart is still open-ended for the Munich, Germany matchup against the New York Giants.
“We’re working through it right now,” Canales said. “Still just trying to make sure we think about all the things that go into it — make sure we’re all on the same page, communicating that and then we’ll make a decision in the next couple of days.”
Conversely, New York Giants head coach Brian Daboll told reporters on Monday that the NFC East squad will stick with Charlotte native Daniel Jones as its lead signal-caller for the NFL International Series game at Allianz Arena.
The Giants, like the Panthers, are 2-7.
Following Carolina’s win against the Saints, Young has some momentum within Canales’ offense. Jones, on the opposite end, has been up and down as of late.
Young completed 61.5% of his passes for 171 yards, a touchdown and a interception against the Saints. He looked poised in the pocket and threw some accurate downfield strikes.
“I thought it was great, just Bryce being out there, playing more football, taking some steps,” Canales said. “I know that being out there with that group of receivers and just getting the chemistry of how guys are going to respond with different coverages, different leverages — to see guys who can make plays for him — and for Bryce to take advantage of some of those opportunities, so I was really pleased with that.
“And just the flow of the offense, running our offense — all the things that we talked about — there was a lot of great improvement in that regard. And, again, a lot of other specific things that I’ll keep in house. But genuinely proud of him just going out there, battling and finishing the way we did.”
Young has thrown for 395 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions since returning to the lineup against the Denver Broncos in Week 8. Dalton was active against the Saints on Sunday but still had his injured thumb taped on the sideline.
Canales said hasn’t told either player if they’ll start in the NFL International Series game. But he added that he will take every variable into account before making the move.
“We’re going to take all of those things into consideration (including Dalton’s injury), and I don’t want to give any specific tips or tells and all that right now,” Canales said. “I know that Andy had a good week of practice (last week), and we have to evaluate, going into this game — which we’ll do today — and make sure we get all that information.”
Panthers quick hits: Updates on Jonathon Brooks, Adam Thielen
▪ Rookie running back Jonathon Brooks (knee/NFI) and defensive end Jaden Crumedy (ankle/IR) will need to be activated from their respective injury lists by 4 p.m. on Wednesday. If either of those players remains on their respective injury lists following that deadline, they’ll be forced to sit out the remainder of their rookie season.
“Really optimistic about Jonathon, just as far as the week that he had,” Canales said Monday. “We’ve got a real critical decision to make with him this week, really on Wednesday. Brooks and Jaden Crumedy will be the two decisions we’ve got to make this week, whether we feel like it’s their time to come up.”
▪ Wide receiver Adam Thielen (hamstring) and safety Jordan Fuller (hamstring) can both remain on injured reserve through Week 10. However, Thielen told reporters on Monday that he wasn’t sure if he’d play this weekend.
“Feeling good,” Thielen said. “Just wasn’t ready to play the last two weeks. Obviously, tried to give it a go — tried to get back on the field. I love to compete, I love to be out there with my guys. And just trying to do everything I can to get back out there, but the last couple of weeks, just wasn’t quite there. Couldn’t do my job at a high enough ability to help this team win. So, try again these next few days, and keep progressing and try to get back out there as fast as possible.”
▪ The Saints fired head coach Dennis Allen on Monday following the loss to the Panthers. The teams split the season series, but New Orleans has lost seven consecutive games following a 2-0 start, which included a 47-10 Week 1 win against the Panthers at home.
▪ Undrafted rookie safety Demani Richardson started his second consecutive game in the 23-22 win against New Orleans. For the second consecutive week, Richardson led the defense with 12 combined tackles. Richardson, who played college ball at Texas A&M, has 23 combined tackles in just two games on defense.
▪ On Monday, Tepper Sports & Entertainment announced that the Carolina Panthers and Charlotte FC will host the 11th annual Tree Lighting Festival on Tuesday, November 26, at Bank of America Stadium.
▪ The matchup in Munich between the Panthers and Giants will take place at 9:30 a.m. for Charlotte-area viewers. Play-by-play announcer Rich Eisen, analyst Kurt Warner, and sideline reporters Jamie Erdahl and Sara Walsh will provide the game’s commentary with the matchup airing on NFL Network (national) and WCNC (local).
