After finishing the 2023 campaign with the worst record in the NFL, the Carolina Panthers fired their coaching staff and brought in Dave Canales to right the ship. For Canales, this is his first time being an NFL head coach after 13 seasons in various roles.
Carolina Panthers Coaching Staff
Here are the names that Canales has hired to join him on the Panthers’ coaching staff.
- Dave Canales, Head Coach
- Brad Idzik, Offensive Coordinator
- Harold Goodwin, Assistant Head Coach / Run Game Coordinator
- Nathan Carroll, Passing Game Coordinator
- Will Harriger, Quarterbacks
- Rob Moore, Wide Receivers
- Pat McPherson, Tight Ends
- Bernie Parmalee, Running Backs
- Joe Gilbert, Offensive Line
- Keli’i Kekuewa, Assistant Offensive Line
- Ejiro Evero, Defensive Coordinator
- Dom Capers, Senior Defensive Assistant
- Jonathan Cooley, Defensive Passing Game Coordinator
- DeAngelo Hall, Assistant Defensive Backs
- Peter Hansen, Linebackers
- Tem Lukabu, Outside Linebackers
- Todd Wash, Defensive Line
- Bert Watts, Secondary Coach
- Tracy Smith, Special Teams Coordinator
- Daren Bates, Special Teams Assistant
- Jim Caldwell, Senior Assistant
- George Li, Game Management Coordinator
- Scott Cooper, Director of Coaching Development and Culture
- Mike Bercovici, Offensive Assistant
- Dean Petzing, Offensive Quality Control
- Mayur Chaudhari, Defensive Assistant
- Bobby Maffei, Defensive Quality Control
- Jessica Beckenstein, Head Coach Assistant & Coaching Operations Manager
While there is plenty of turnover from last season, Carolina opted to retain 14 assistants from the previous coaching staff under Frank Reich. Most notably, defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero and his assistants were brought back.
In 2023, the Panthers ranked fourth in yards per game allowed. As a result, it was a no-brainer that the team would retain the defensive staff that was responsible for that.
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Another prominent coach from last year’s staff who is returning this season is senior assistant Jim Caldwell. Having been in the NFL since 2001, Caldwell has had a plethora of experience, including multiple head coaching, coordinator, and position coach stints.
Other coaches coming back include Dom Capers, Todd Wash, Bert Watts, Jonathan Cooley, Peter Hansen, Tem Lukabu, DeAngelo Hall, Kenny Richmond, Mike Bercovici, and George Li.
New Additions to the Panthers’ Coaching Staff
With most of the defensive staff retained, one of Canales’ most important hires was offensive coordinator, considering how badly former No. 1 overall pick Bryce Young struggled in his rookie season leading this unit.
For this role, he hired Brad Idzik, a first-time OC, who has plenty of experience working with Canales.
Idzik was most recently the wide receivers coach under Canales with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023. Prior to that, he was also with Canales on the Seattle Seahawks from 2019-2022 as the assistant wide receivers coach, assistant quarterbacks coach, and offensive quality control coach.
Long story short, Idzik was brought in as the OC of the Panthers to do what he’s been doing for five years — helping Canales run the show.
Another notable addition was Harold Goodwin, who will serve as the assistant head coach and run game coordinator. Having experience in coaching since 1995 and in the NFL since 2004, Goodwin brings lots of experience as a former OL coach and offensive coordinator. Additionally, he held the same position with the Buccaneers from 2019-2023.