But wait, eight is not a normal score in football, an interception isn't categorized as one point, and why would Canales need to prepare for a tiebreaker?
"The tally is just, it's a point for—you got to get 4 (yards) or more on a run for the offense to win. If defense stops them, then that's a point for the defense," Canales explained of the game within the game that the Panthers have started playing every day at practice. "An incomplete is a point for the defense. Completion is a point. Interceptions count for two. Touchdown counts for three."
Canales and general manager Dan Morgan have preached the same message since taking their respective roles, with an increase in volume this past offseason: everything will be a competition. The position battles, the spots on special teams, the games Canales sometimes set up at the end of the day, and every layer of practice will all be good-natured but a competition nonetheless, with the plan it carries over to the field.