CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dave Canales pushed the Carolina Panthers starters “to get after it” Tuesday in their final full practice in pads of training camp, since they aren’t playing in Thursday night’s preseason finale against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
So the second-year head coach didn’t seem to mind when a scuffle broke out late in the session, involving Pro Bowl cornerback Jaycee Horn and starting left tackle Ikem Ekwonu, and spilled over after practice between those two stars and other players.
“We were in a competitive moment,” Canales said. “Tempers flared. We tried to push the guys to the edge. They went a little bit over. But at the same time, that’s the edginess you have to play with when we have these opportunities. We have to play a physical style of football.
“Sometimes, it goes a little too far.”
Canales wants the Panthers to be more physical than they were a year ago, when they finished with a 5-12 record. He said at the start of camp that he didn’t “think people are going to want to play us because of the style of football that we play.”
On Tuesday, he said the players “took it to a crescendo” with the extended scuffling and went “to a place I want our football to be, and we have to be comfortable operating there.”
Canales admitted he might have pushed players “a little too hard” during his pre-practice team meeting by saying, “Last day in pads. Let’s get after it. Let’s go get it.”
Canales reminded players that the soreness they were feeling from Saturday’s 20-3 loss to the Houston Texans, which dropped Carolina’s preseason record to 0-2, is what it will feel like on a Wednesday during the regular season.
“Every week it’s super physical in this league,” Canales said. “You’re not fully healthy by Wednesday. … You have to make a decision to go, and they did that.”
Canales also liked that his players took charge early during practice, which he challenged them to do at the beginning of camp.
After yet another pre-snap penalty that has plagued Carolina in practice, as well as losses to the Cleveland Browns and Texans, quarterback Bryce Young and running back Chuba Hubbard had the offense run a gasser.
“That was all player-led,” said Canales, who admittedly was confused when players began running from sideline to sideline. “They had been talking to each other and holding each other accountable to the pre-snap stuff I’ve been harping on.
“I’m not a big fan of the gassers. We don’t need to do that kind of stuff and add more volume to the high intensity that I’m expecting in all phases. For the guys, it meant something to them. That was their way of trying to adjust today.”
Although Canales liked the spirit and energy of practice, he planned to meet with players later in the day to let them know fighting won’t be tolerating once they get into the season.
“Good teachable moment,” Canales said. “But a fantastic day of work.”
