Panthers hit crisis mode after loss, with Dave Canales as ‘common denominator’

The Carolina Panthers are a very bad football team.

Occasionally, they push this fact to the background with an unusually adept performance, akin to a blind squirrel finding an acorn. But then reality bites, as it did on Sunday, when they went to New England and got walloped, 42-13, by the Patriots.

New England (2-2) is a long way removed from the Super Bowl Belichick-Brady juggernauts, but the Patriots scored 42 — 42! — unanswered points in a game that made Carolina head coach Dave Canales call everything he was doing into question.

Said Canales of Carolina’s performance, which he noted was poor in all aspects: “When it happens in all phases, I’m the common denominator, and I have to take responsibility for that. I have to make sure I’m pushing the guys the right way. I have to evaluate what we’re doing, how we’re working, how we’re preparing our guys. I felt confident about that part. But we’re not getting the results.”

You can say that again. And to Canales’ credit, he did. Several times.

Carolina (1-3) threw in a sweet mirage last week — clobbering Atlanta, 30-0, in a remarkably error-free game. But after one week of renting a Ferrari, the Panthers were back driving their 1976 Ford Pinto on Sunday, and it all went about as well as that very same car performed when I had one as a teenager.

Panthers owner David Tepper walked by me in the tunnel headed toward Carolina’s locker room after the game. He did not look happy. Nor did anyone else in that locker room after this blowout, which could bring about major changes within hours (some similar losses have in the past) but, more than likely, won’t.

Canales, for instance, said after the game that quarterback Bryce Young would start next week at home against Miami, that he didn’t anticipate making any staff changes at the moment and that he also didn’t think he was going to give up calling plays.

The Carolina players looked like they had just taken their worst loss of the season, which they had. Said Panthers safety Nick Scott: “Guys are pissed off…. Guys are angry. Guys are upset. You put a lot into this game, and this happens. I mean, it’s embarrassing.”

And yet no one (outside of Panthers fans at least) was publicly asking for an alteration in the status quo.

Said Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard, when asked what needed to change: “We’re not going to change anything. We’re just going to keep working hard. I mean, I think in times like this, everyone can be like, ‘Oh, do this. Do that.’ But I think we just have to stick to our process and just continue building off that. So we’re not changing anything.”

With all due respect, that’s not going to work. We have seen that it doesn’t work. Repeatedly.

Some things have got to change. Maybe the coaching staff needs to be shaken up. Maybe Young — ineffective except for his first drive and now 1-15 as a starter in NFL road games — needs an Andy Dalton reset like he got last year. Maybe Canales needs to be more of a CEO head coach and relinquish playcalling.

And believe me, Canales’ job isn’t totally safe, either, if this team keeps losing big and losing often. Although Tepper has repeatedly and quietly preached patience with the second-year head coach, the owner has also fired three Carolina head coaches in the middle of three previous NFL seasons (Ron Rivera, Matt Rhule and Frank Reich) and installed interim head coaches.

Carolina has two winnable games coming up next at home in Charlotte, against Miami and Dallas. If the Panthers lose both of those, too, and drop to 1-5? All bets are off.

Canales is now 6-15 as a head coach for Carolina. Young is 7-25 as a starter. Tepper is 37-83 as the team’s owner, but he’s not going anywhere. A lot of other people will, though, if this continues.

It’s hard to believe now, but the Panthers actually prompted some New England fans to start booing early in the game. After taking the opening kickoff, the Panthers marched right down the field on one of their best drives of the last several seasons. They didn’t even face a third down as they rolled to one substantial gain after another, ending the march with Young’s 7-yard touchdown pass to Tommy Tremble to take a 6-0 lead.

“Booooo!” yelled a number of Patriot fans, already disgruntled.

And then it all disintegrated.

The problems started slowly, as Carolina’s previously perfect rookie placekicker Ryan Fitzgerald doinked the extra point off the left upright. No good.

After a New England punt, Carolina had a chance to extend its lead. But after moving to the Patriots 45, on third-and-10, Canales inexplicably called a draw play (he would do much the same thing on a later third-and-long, with similarly poor results). Carolina only gained two yards, punted…. and suddenly, it all changed.

As Carolina’s punt coverage team converged, New England returner Marcus Jones eschewed calling for a fair catch at his own 13, made a couple of moves and was only touched by a single Panther as he made like a flew down the left sideline for 87 yards and a 7-6 New England lead.

From there came a familiar litany of Panther mistakes.

Jones set up yet another TD with a 61-yard return, as Carolina’s special teams had one of their worst days in franchise history.

Coming back to our planet after a tremendous start to the season, Fitzgerald was short on a field-goal attempt from 55 yards. Young started overthrowing and underthrowing receivers under pressure — on one play, he missed rookie Tetairoa McMillan on what would have been a sure touchdown.

On and on it went. Canales’ offensive playcalls were uninspired. The defense, after pitching a shutout a week ago vs. Atlanta, couldn’t stop anybody and allowed N.C. product Drake Maye to complete practically every pass he threw. Maye, meanwhile, thoroughly outplayed Young and paid homage to the Cam Newton “Superman” celebration by doing it after he scored the second of New England’s six — six! — touchdowns.

By halftime, it was 28-6 New England, and the game was all but over.

The big halftime deficit has been a trend this year. Carolina also trailed 20-3 in both Week 1 and Week 2 at halftime.

Instead of starting fast, as every team preaches, the Panthers play most first halves like they’re rubbing their eyes and stumbling toward the coffeepot. If they don’t wake up soon, all this is going to get even worse.

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