There’s plenty of buzz surrounding new Carolina Panthers wide receivers Diontae Johnson and Xavier Legette heading into the 2024 season. But what about the guys behind them?
Head coach Dave Canales hit the lectern after wrapping up the third practice of training camp on Saturday morning. He was asked how the team’s wideout competition—particularly the one behind the projected top three options of Johnson, Legette and Adam Thielen—has panned out thus far.
“Man, you see [Jonathan] Mingo, Terrace Marshall—really showin’ who they are,” he replied. “David Moore—you throw the ball his way, he comes up with it. So I’ve really seen those guys come through and we can depend on them.
“It’s a really good room. Really good competition. Some different style of players. Ihmir [Smith-Marsette] making some nice plays today. So it’s something that we’re counting on.”
Before heading the ship here in Charlotte and his days as a “quarterback whisperer,” Canales spent a good chunk of his NFL career as a wide receivers coach. The former Azusa Pacific University pass catcher led the position group for Pete Carroll and the Seattle Seahawks from 2010 to 2017—an eight-year run where he worked with the likes of Golden Tate, Doug Baldwin, Tyler Lockett and D.K. Metcalf.
So, yeah, Canales probably knows what he’s looking at when it comes to this spot. And now, he’s hoping his current receivers keep their heads (and hands) in the right direction.
“We talk about creating that competition and challenging every position—and that’s exactly what we want,” Canales added. “We wanna make sure everybody’s pursuin’ their best. They’re not looking left and right. They’re just focusing on their execution and we’re getting good execution out of those guys right now.”
