An NFL coach leaned on faith to overcome addiction and infidelity — then wrote a book about it

Dave Canales, the new head coach of the Carolina Panthers, has a unique faith-based writing project on his resumé.

Along with his wife, Lizzy, Canales is the author of a book about how religion can help you navigate life’s challenges, including infidelity and binge drinking.

“The book ‘This Marriage? The Question That Changed Everything’ ... details how the 42-year-old coach has worked to overcome his problems and (how) the couple found its way back to a healthy, Christian-based marriage,” according to The Associated Press.

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Conquering infidelity and pornography addiction with faith

In their book, Dave and Lizzy Canales explore Dave Canales’ struggles with alcohol, pornography and sex, and how those challenges affected their marriage.

They explain in the book that they wrote it with the goal of helping other couples and with the knowledge that publishing it could limit how high Canales could rise in the NFL’s coaching ranks.

“We wanted other people to feel safe starting this journey toward a vibrant marriage by helping them see they are not alone,” per The Associated Press.

The book was published in September 2022, and it didn’t take long to see that it wouldn’t actually hold Canales back from new NFL opportunities.

In February 2023, he was hired to be the offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and then, about a year later, was picked by the Carolina Panthers to serve as head coach.

A team representative confirmed to The Associated Press that the Panthers were aware of the book before extending the job offer to Canales.

Dave Canales’ coaching background

Before being hired by the Panthers, Canales spent one season as offensive coordinator in Tampa Bay. He earned praise for helping quarterback Baker Mayfield find a new gear and helping the team win the NFC South.

“He’s an unbelievable guy,” Mayfield said of Canales during last week’s NFL Pro Bowl festivities. “Somebody that is truly authentic and optimistic about everything ... it’s rare.”

From 2010-2011, Canales was with the Seattle Seahawks serving in various offensive coaching positions, according to his bio on the Panthers website. “He helped the organization to 10 playoff appearances, two conference championships and a Super Bowl XLVIII title,” the article noted.

Before 2010, Canales coached at the collegiate and high school level. Over the course of six seasons, he went from serving as offensive coordinator for Carson High School, his alma mater, to working as an assistant strength coach for USC.

Canales entered the coaching world after wrapping up his own playing career in college. He was a wide receiver for Azusa Pacific University, an evangelical Christian school in southern California.

Canales is a native of Carson, California, per the Panthers website.

Dave Canales’ religion

Even before Canales enrolled at Azusa Pacific, faith was a big part of his life. His grandparents planted a church in Carson in 1959, and, along with his parents, planted a love of God in him.

“They ... instilled faith in Jesus through hard times,” Canales told a staff writer for the Bucs last year.

While his brother became a pastor and went on to lead the church that his grandparents founded, Canales determined that he was meant to serve God on the football field. In that 2023 interview, he described how he tries to embody religious values as a coach.

“I learned that wherever I go, to meet the most basic needs that my immediate community needs from me. That is the cornerstone of how Lizzy and I bring all that we are to the Buccaneers,” he said.

Lizzy Canales told the Bucs writer that faith helps explain why her husband is so good at connecting with players.

“He will come home and say, ‘Wow. I had a conversation today and it was just a total God thing. I was late from the sauna because I ran into so-and-so, and he opened up to me.’ Dave is in the moment, fully engaged and right there with you,” she said.

The coach sometimes references his faith in his posts to X, the site formerly known as Twitter.

“Today if anything is trying to hold you back, give no attention to it. Get your hopes up, get your faith up, look up, and get ready to rise,” Canales posted on June 22.