FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Jordan Matthews has been around. He's seen some things.

And what he saw from Panthers rookie head coach Dave Canales last night during the preseason opener was an encouraging sign for the veteran tight end. The game might not have been much to look at — a 17-3 loss to the Patriots, and the offensive reserves didn't offer much. But Matthews still liked the way Canales was engaged with the entire team in his first game in charge of all of them.

"What's crazy is, he's super-positive, you know?" Matthews said with a grin. "He's very intentional with his words, and there was a point where I think it was 7-0, and we all know that we want to string a drive together for the offense, and penalties were killing us, and we had a couple of guys go down. And there could have been a lot of things said, but at that moment, I heard him say to (director of coaching development and culture) Scott Cooper, he was like, 'How about our defense right now?'

"And stuff like that is extremely needed because it's truth. Like our defense is playing their butts off, and it's positive. So as an offense, I hear that, and I'm like, that's right, our defense is playing well. OK, we've got to pick it up."

Players are finding out that's who Canales appears to be every day. While he might occasionally push back on just being described as "positive" — he's the first to point out that the bigger issue is getting the football right, not just being in a better mood — it's delivered with a tone that players appreciate.

"It comes from a very authentic place," said the 32-year-old Matthews, who played for the Eagles, Bills, Patriots, and 49ers, so he's been around winning organizations. "I just think Dave is very intentional with his work."

Players picked up on that vibe in his first game on the sidelines in black and blue. After the game, he talked about giving young players opportunities and being able to work on organizational details, like going through his first (successful) challenge process with game management coordinator George Li. What he wasn't was hung up on the result or the fact the offensive backups didn't move the ball consistently. He's still worried about that, but he also pointed out being encouraged by the side of the ball he hasn't specialized in his entire career.

"I think the word I would use is very tactical, very calm, you know what I'm saying?" said veteran defensive tackle Nick Thurman, who also spent time with the Patriots during his NFL travels. "He just takes the information that he has to try to make the best decision. The call with the challenge, I thought he handled it well, and I would just say he was very methodical, very technical. Not too high, not too low. Just being even-keeled, that's the word I would use to describe it."

Not freaking out is indeed a positive; it helps nothing. And for the players who have been around, they recognize it's not something you can take for granted.

"I would say for some of the vets in here, we definitely appreciate that," Thurman said. "We definitely appreciate that everyday attitude and you can see that he cares, you know what I'm saying? He cares about us, and he wants to do the best for us. I think tonight it's just a testament to that."

In addition to managing the game in front of him, Canales also had a full sideline, with more than 30 of his starters and regulars held out of the first preseason game. Quarterback Bryce Young, who didn't play, said Canales was "still the same upbeat guy" while acknowledging the obvious.

"I think he did a great job; he talked about it being his first time as a head coach, too," Young said. "I think it's still a learning experience, some good things, some stuff to work on, and then we'll get home and we'll go back and watch the tape and go from there."

Left tackle Ikem Ekwonu, who also didn't play, said he could see the same energy from Canales even when a few injuries hit, leaving them with just five healthy offensive linemen to finish the game.

"He's still always a beacon of hope, always had the energy with him," Ekwonu said. "He's also a guy who demands better; some of the things we did obviously weren't up to our standards today. So those are some things that he addressed and some things we're going to clean up moving forward.

"It's still very instructive, it's not like too critical or anything. So that's something that we definitely appreciate."

Offensive lineman Brady Christensen, who played every snap Thursday night said that players ultimately have to raise their level, but he liked the way Canales approached the game.

"He's very positive, and he gets after it," Christensen said. "He always says that we need to bring our own energy, but we didn't bring that enough tonight. It starts with me; I need to bring more energy to the guys up front because, at the end of the day, it all starts up front.

"So we need that energy driver."

He's clearly able to provide some of that, as he was still smiling when he walked off the field, knowing there was only so much to take from a game contested by few players he'll count on in the regular season. It was similar to the way he handles external conditions during practices. When it starts raining, he doesn't run for a jacket; he just adjusts to the situation as it presents itself and keeps the focus on the work. It's one thing to be positive; it's more important to have your eye on the ball.

"Consistency is everything," Canales said during his first post-game presser. "I want them to know that I'm there for them. I have their back, and I'm really just pushing for the style of play. It's a great effort. It was there; the enthusiasm was there. The guys that didn't play were engaged. They were celebrating their teammates when they made plays. I love that.

"The toughness was there, the playing smart part of our style, I don't think we got that one done offensively just with how many penalties we had and just how difficult we made it on an already pretty difficult night there. And the finish, for Jake to come in with that last group, take us down the field, get the ball to some of our players in their hands and get us down there where we could get on the board was, was a really good feeling to be able to just stay with it guys. We're playing for 60 minutes, or however long it takes. And so I love the finish there."

Matthews grinned when that approach was mentioned. As a veteran, he has a perspective on games like this one. He's been around some top coaches like Doug Peterson and Kyle Shanahan, so he appreciates the way Canales handled a game that's easy to overreact to.

"He's got some of the shorter team meetings I've ever been a part of because he's like, I'm not going to just throw out word vomit when I say things, it's going to have some meaning and weight to it," Matthews said. "And I think he's doing an amazing job with that. I still go back to my first year with Doug, and we joke now about his first team meeting. That had to be the worst speech I've ever heard in my life. But man, he's an amazing coach, and he just knew how to get guys to buy in. And that's the biggest thing: you've got to learn how to make guys believe in what your vision is and want to run through a wall for you. I was fortunate to play for a lot of great coaches, such as Doug and Kyle. Obviously, he's got those guys in San Francisco ready to run through a wall whenever.

"And what I loved tonight was I heard guys talking about football, they were really engaged on the sideline in a preseason game that ultimately is going to mean nothing. And I think that trickles down from how Dave approaches it. These guys are all ball, but at the same time, they do it in a way that just makes it very palatable. We like coming to work. It's fun, but we also know we've got to get the job done. So it was a good night, and like I said, just being around Dave and his positive energy, I think, is really going to help us moving forward."

The positivity helps. The work matters more, and if guys enjoy that part, the first part might take care of itself.