By STEVE REED (AP Sports Writer)
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Dave Canales is ready to begin his journey as head coach of the Carolina Panthers 16 months after co-authoring a faith-based book about working through problems with his sexual infidelity, addiction to pornography and binge drinking.
The book “This Marriage? The Question That Changed Everything” was written by Canales and his wife, Lizzy. It details how the 42-year-old coach has worked to overcome his problems and the couple found its way back to a healthy, Christian-based marriage.
Canales, who attended Carson High School and Azusa Pacific, wrote that with the help of counseling and family, he no longer has issues with infidelity or pornography and he has stopped drinking completely.
Canales published the book in September 2022 when he was still a position coach with the Seattle Seahawks and before he got his big break and became offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2023, leaving him one step from becoming a head coach.
The couple said they wrote the book to help other couples struggling with marriage.
“We wanted other people to feel safe starting this journey toward a vibrant marriage by helping them see they are not alone,” the couple wrote in the book’s preface.
The couple said writing the book and reliving the painful details of their past was like going through another round of counseling, but it helped them “find renewed healing and hope through a stronger understanding of what happened.”
The Panthers said they were aware of the book before hiring Canales last week.
A team spokesman said Canales would not be available for comment until his introductory news conference in Charlotte on Thursday.
Canales wrote in the book about how he finally made some “dark confessions” about his infidelity to his wife.
“A huge part in the severed intimacy that I was experiencing with Lizzy was because I was addicted to pornography,” Canales wrote. “It was like a…
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