Bucs assistants Joe Gilbert, Harold Goodwin follow Canales to Carolina
TAMPA — Dave Canales is convincing more Bucs assistant coaches there’s something finer in Carolina.
The Panthers’ new head coach is hiring offensive line coach Joe Gilbert and run game coordinator Harold Goodwin, the Tampa Bay Times confirmed.
The contracts of both assistants had expired, and they were free to join another team.
Gilbert and Goodwin will be reunited with former Bucs receivers coach Brad Idzik, the Panthers’ new offensive coordinator.
Canales spent one season as a first-time offensive coordinator with Tampa Bay and parlayed that into Carolina’s head-coaching job.
Bucs head coach Todd Bowles made sweeping changes to his staff a year ago, including firing offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich,, running backs coach Todd McNair and receivers coach Kevin Garver. Quarterbacks coach Clyde Christensen announced his retirement.
However, Bowles spared both Gilbert and Goodwin, despite the fact the Bucs had the worst rushing offense in the NFL.
Even with the arrival of Canales, the Bucs still ranked last in the league with an average of 3.4 yards per carry.
However, there was improvement during the season by running back Rachaad White, who finished eighth in the league with 1,539 yards from scrimmage.
Canales never missed an opportunity to talk about how much he respected the job done by Gilbert and Goodwin, who arrived as part of Bruce Arians’ staff in 2019.
The Bucs are busy trying to hire a coordinator to replace Canales. One of the candidates who interviewed with Tampa Bay on Tuesday, Texans quarterbacks coach Jerrod Johnson, is remaining in Houston, according to multiple reports.
The Bucs now face the prospect of bringing in a whole new offensive staff for Bowles, who will have his third coordinator in as many seasons as head coach.
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