The Carolina Panthers weren’t supposed to beat the Green Bay Packers. They weren’t supposed to be above .500 in November, either.
But despite being battered, doubted, and still learning how to win, Dave Canales’ team accomplished both. And the way they did it said more about where this program is heading than any single scoreline could.
When Canales arrived, his message was simple: build the proper habits, and the results will follow. But for a year and two months, that sounded like another silly little coaching slogan.
Carolina Panthers are showing a newfound personality under Dave Canales
Then came Lambeau Field, and a victory that looked like everything Canales has been preaching behind the scenes. Carolina played through mistakes, leaned on physicality, and finished a game it would’ve lost a month ago. It was a snapshot of what the coach has built.
“From carry one, it was attitude, it was aggression and violence at the end of it,” Canales said of running back Rico Dowdle. “It really does affect the group. It affects the whole sideline when they see that kind of energy. That kind of violence gives them confidence. It's who we want to be.”
Dowdle, once an overlooked rotational back, ran like a man who understood this was his shot to define the offense. With 130 rushing yards and two touchdowns, he set the tone for one of the Panthers’ best ground performances of the season against a Packers defense that ranked third in the NFL against the run.
And yet, his most significant moment came after his lowest.
After his second touchdown, Dowdle was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for a Key & Peele-inspired celebration. It was a small thing that could’ve snowballed into disaster, especially after kicker Ryan Fitzgerald missed the ensuing long extra point attempt in swirling wind. But Canales didn’t bench him, instead choosing to trust him.
Dowdle rewarded that faith with a 19-yard run in the final minute, setting up Fitzgerald’s game-winning 49-yard field goal, the rookie’s second walk-off kick of the year.
It’s easy to forget how inexperienced this team really is. Between Bryce Young, Fitzgerald, and receiver Tetairoa McMillan, the Panthers closed out their road win with two rookies and a second-year player making key plays on the final drive.
Canales hasn’t turned the Panthers into a contender overnight. But he’s done something arguably more impressive: he’s changed the psychology of the team.
The Panthers are 5-4 for the first time since 2019, their offense is starting to reflect its coach’s personality, and for the first time in years, Carolina football feels like it has a heartbeat again.