Dave Canales has helped Bryce Young escape his fate as yet another failed quarterback selected first overall.The Carolina Panthers signal-caller has come on leaps and bounds after being drafted No. 1 overall in 2023 and winning just seven games in his first two seasons combined.Canales’ wife has been by his side throughout his riseGettyFast forward to 2026 and Young and the Panthers are top of the NFC South with a 3-3 record ahead of a Thursday Night Football clash against the Green Bay Packers.As redemption arcs go, it is a good one for Young, but nothing on his coach and mentor.Canales took his first head coach role with the Panthers in 2024, having worked his way through the ranks from the offensive coordinator at Carson High School in California to the NFL over two decades. Two years before his big break, he co-authored a deeply personal book with his wide Lizzy about his unfaithfulness, pornography addiction and binge drinking.A faith-based text, ‘This Marriage? The Question That Changed Everything’ revealed how he battled a darker side to his personality while on the path to success.“I was living a secret life,” Canales wrote via The Charlotte Observer. “No matter how hard I tried by going to church, reading my Bible and praying… I always had a secret, dark place that was just mine.”Canales’ book came out while he was a position coach with the Seattle Seahawks and he soon got a major break as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ offensive coordinator.There, he helped Baker Mayfield‘s own resurgence before being tasked with helping Young reach his potential.“We wanted other people to feel safe starting this journey toward a vibrant marriage by helping them see they are not alone,” they wrote.Canales’ demons go back to before he and Lizzy were married and in the book, he explains that he cheated on her at his bachelor party — a month before they tied the knot.Lizzy and Dave shared their journey as a couple with the worldGettyCanales has earned a reputation as a quarterback whispererGetty“A huge part in the severed intimacy that I was experiencing with Lizzy was because I was addicted to pornography,” he wrote. “It was like a gateway drug for me, creating pathways in my brain that allowed me to use sex coldly for my own benefit. “It was a secret, silent struggle that I had years before I was married.“From the start of our relationship, I was binge drinking and going out with friends, without Lizzy,” read another excerpt. “Before I was ever unfaithful to her, I was already there in my mind. “Bad habits combined with addiction made it hard for me to resist temptation. It was a pattern I knew well before we started dating.”Per The Observer, his mother-in-law’s reaction was to say: “I never trusted you fully. I’ve told Lizzy that, and now I know why.”Canales’ father is a pastor and his Christian faith has helped him make positive changes.He wrote: “I quit drinking alcohol altogether, knowing that I do not have great restraint in that area, and it numbs me to making other poor choices.”Young and the Panthers lead the NFC South ahead of a TNF clash against the PackersGettyCanales and Lizzy, who have four children, are stronger than ever after taking the unusual step of sharing their troubles.“Unlike so many couples today, they didn’t let their marriage wither away,” wrote ex-NFL coach Tony Dungy in the forward. “They wouldn’t let it go. “So instead, David and Lizzy resolved to get things back on the right track and rediscover that sense of purpose and that intimacy they had at the beginning. I’m happy to let you know they have done just that.”Sign up for talkSPORT Stateside, the YouTube channel dedicated to passionate US Sports fans. Will Gavin, Brian T. Smith, former NFL star Efe Obada and a collection of special guests debate the biggest talking points across the NFL, soccer, NBA and more.NFL's Greatest......Ranking the top 10......Quarterbacks of all-time – Can anyone better Tom Brady?Wide receivers of all-time – Does Randy Moss or Jerry Rice come out on top?Running backs of all-time – Stacking Jim Brown, Barry Sanders, Walter Payton, Emmitt Smith and moreTight ends of all-time – How does Travis Kelce compare?