{"id":825493,"date":"2026-03-21T17:47:51","date_gmt":"2026-03-21T17:47:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/825493\/"},"modified":"2026-03-21T17:47:51","modified_gmt":"2026-03-21T17:47:51","slug":"why-kenny-pickett-was-drawn-to-carolina-panthers-by-dave-canales","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/825493\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Kenny Pickett was drawn to Carolina Panthers by Dave Canales"},"content":{"rendered":"

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It was March 21, 2022, when Kenny Pickett<\/a> had lunch with Dave Canales at a South Pittsburgh brewery called Fat Head\u2019s Saloon after the quarterback\u2019s workout at Pitt\u2019s pro day.<\/p>\n

Canales was the Seattle Seahawks<\/a>\u2019 quarterbacks coach two years prior to becoming Carolina\u2019s head coach, but he was already earning a reputation for being a \u201cquarterback whisperer\u2019\u2019 after helping revive Geno Smith<\/a>\u2019s career and elevating the play of Russell Wilson<\/a> in Seattle.<\/p>\n

That lunch with Canales, and future conversations with Smith, made such an impression on Pickett — selected No. 20 by the Pittsburgh Steelers<\/a> in 2022 — that he signed with Carolina as a free agent last week (one year, $4 million guaranteed, $7.5 million maximum).<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the guys you really want to be around in this league, this profession,\u201d Pickett said of Canales on a recent video call with reporters. \u201cIt\u2019s a tough business, but great people make it a lot easier.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Canales added Pickett, 27, to develop behind Bryce Young<\/a>, the No. 1 pick of the 2023 draft. He replaces 38-year-old Andy Dalton<\/a>, who on Wednesday was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles<\/a> for a 2027 seventh-round draft pick.<\/p>\n

The Panthers wanted to get younger and more athletic at the position.<\/p>\n

Pickett, who was 14-10 in his first two seasons with the Steelers, still wants to be a starter. He also understands his role with Carolina and said he believes working with Canales ultimately will help him get another opportunity.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just really wanted to get in a great system with great people,\u2019\u2019 said Pickett, the Eagles\u2019 backup during their 2024 Super Bowl championship run and the Las Vegas Raiders<\/a>\u2019 backup in 2025. \u201cThat\u2019s just where I am right now, taking it a day at a time, working really hard this offseason to improve my game in the weight room, on the field.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis new system is really my main concern right now. I\u2019m really not trying to look too far down the road. I want to be a positive addition to this team and help any way I can.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Pickett also has a relationship with Young that goes back to the 2021, when both were Heisman Trophy finalists. Young won after a stellar season at Alabama, Pickett finished third. The two also spent a little time together last August during a joint practice with Cleveland, when Pickett was with the Browns briefly before being traded to the Raiders.<\/p>\n

\u201cBryce is a great guy,\u2019\u2019 Pickett said. \u201cI respect him and his journey that he\u2019s been on. It seems like he\u2019s constantly working, constantly trying to improve. So definitely looking forward to working with him.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

Despite an 8-8 record as the starter last season after going 6-22 his first two seasons, Young\u2019s 2025 Total QBR was 47.5, which ranked 22nd in the NFL. His 14 career wins are two fewer than Pickett\u2019s 16-11 record as a starter.<\/p>\n

But Pickett saw enough progress in Young, along with the turnarounds of other quarterbacks Canales has worked with, to feel Charlotte was the best place as a free agent.<\/p>\n

He still envisions himself getting a starting opportunity like Daniel Jones<\/a> (Colts) and Malik Willis<\/a> (Dolphins) have found in the second chapter of their careers.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course,\u2019\u2019 Pickett said. \u201cThat\u2019s the ultimate goal. You just keep working because you never know when that opportunity is going to come.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

That\u2019s one of the things he talked to Smith about last season. Under Canales in 2022, the 2013 second-round pick by the New York Jets<\/a> went 9-8 with 4,282 passing yards, 30 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He made the Pro Bowl and was named the NFL Comeback Player of the Year. He credited Canales, calling him a \u201cgreat coach\u2019\u2019 with an \u201celite\u2019\u2019 approach.<\/p>\n

He predicted that would pay off for Young.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Geno] had nothing but great things to say about [Canales],\u2019\u2019 Pickett said. \u201cTo hear it from a player who worked with him, it was awesome.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

The Panthers took a serious look at Pickett in 2022 when Matt Rhule was the head coach, Scott Fitterer the general manager and Sam Darnold<\/a> the quarterback before Baker Mayfield<\/a> was added. They brought Pickett to Charlotte for a pre-draft visit but ultimately took left tackle Ikem Ekwonu<\/a> at No. 6.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of new faces this time around,\u2019\u2019 Pickett said of his return to Bank of America Stadium.<\/p>\n

Pickett has at least one good memory from playing at BOA. He led Pittsburgh to a 45-21 victory over Wake Forest in the 2021 ACC championship game. He completed 20 of 33 passes for 253 yards and two touchdowns.<\/p>\n

But what stood out the most was his 58-yard touchdown run aided by a fake slide that the NCAA quickly made illegal moving forward.<\/p>\n

Pickett couldn\u2019t help but grin about that.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great memory,\u2019\u2019 Pickett said. \u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019m smiling. That was a special night to do it in Charlotte. I was a five-year guy, and that\u2019s all we talked about was winning the ACC championship.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was pretty cool. Hopefully, we can make some more great memories to see.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It was March 21, 2022, when Kenny Pickett had lunch with Dave Canales at a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":825494,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2075],"tags":[235,260,71229,2567,7,114344,6,236],"class_list":{"0":"post-825493","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-carolina-panthers","8":"tag-carolina","9":"tag-carolina-panthers","10":"tag-carolina-panthers-sports-football-team-team-statscom-364","11":"tag-carolinapanthers","12":"tag-football","13":"tag-kenny-pickett-sports-football-player-player-statscom-976924","14":"tag-nfl","15":"tag-panthers"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116268427189148691","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/825493","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=825493"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/825493\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/825494"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=825493"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=825493"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=825493"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}