HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Tampa Bay is counting on Dave Canales to help the Buccaneers remain relevant as the Tom Brady era has ended.
The former Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach replaces Byron Leftwich, who guided Tampa Bay to only 18.4 points per game last season.
“This is not the Seahawks; this is not Buccaneers 2022,” Canales said.
The 2023 Bucs currently only have one quarterback under contract: Kyle Trask.
“I really liked him coming out (of the University of Florida),” Canales said. “If you looked at some of the skilled position players he had there, Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney, who had the big return in the Super Bowl, Dameon Pierce was another guy. He was able to distribute.
“The thing we’re going to help Kyle to build on is to just be a point guard. Point guards don’t have to be the ones to score all the points. Just distribute. Play on time. Get the ball out of your hands. Life is better that way when you do that. You got these bears chasing you. If you don’t like bears chasing you, get rid of the ham. That’s the football.” said Canales.
Canales is credited with revitalizing the career of veteran Seattle quarterback Geno Smith, who was named the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year. But this job offers a new challenge.
“I’ve never called plays at the collegiate or NFL level,” he said. “I called plays way, way back. I was a head JV coach in 2004. That was really fun. I didn’t answer to anybody.”
Canales admitted that his lack of play-calling experience was a concern in his interview with head coach Todd Bowles.
“I know that I am going to take my lumps and learn some lessons along the way. I’ll learn quickly. I’m a quick study,” he said. “I will say, though, play-calling is not the hardest part of this job. The hardest part of this job is creating a culture.”
Canales has worked under Seattle coach Pete Carroll in Seattle since 2010, spending his entire NFL career as an assistant in various roles on Carroll’s staff.
