AUBURN — When people look back on Sal Cannella's 2017 season, they tend to remember two plays.

Play 1: Up 34-7 against Georgia Southern, Auburn faced a second-and-11 early in the fourth quarter. Jarrett Stidham went play-action to Kam Martin and fired an intermediate pass to the right sideline. What would've been an 18-yard first-down strike ended as Cannella's first drop of his Auburn career.

Play 2: Up 21-13 against Texas A&M, on the second play of the second half, Stidham heaved a second-and-7 throw a few yards past the first-down line. Cannella found a crease with his hitch pattern and, despite four Aggies quickly converging on him, he dropped what should've been a 12-yard first-down gain.

That's what everyone remembers.

There were other good and bad moments in 2017 for Cannella.

In the opener, he had a 19-yard sideline grab on Auburn's fourth play from scrimmage. He was called for a holding penalty against Mercer that negated a Ryan Davis first down. Cannella had two other catches, for 5 yards and 7 yards against Mercer and LSU. He had two passes broken up by LSU defenders. Despite the roller coaster, coaches still put Cannella on the field for an Iron Bowl goal-line situation, but pocket pressure didn't give Stidham a chance to look his way.

That, in its entirety, encapsulates the reality of Cannella's 2017 season. But whatever everyone will remember — and what kept him off the field — were those drops.

"I would hope [he was angry]. If you’ve got anything about you, you want to play. So it you’re not frustrated and you’re not playing, then that’s not a good sign," receivers coach Kodi Burns said earlier this spring. "The fact that he was probably a little upset that he felt like he should be playing, well that’s good."

Something clicked with Cannella this offseason.

The injuries to Will Hastings and Eli Stove showed the former JUCO tight end there were spots to fill on the depth chart. When Gus Malzahn released the two-deep Tuesday, one of the eyebrow-raisers was Cannella's presence as the top slot receiver.

For someone who'd been diagnosed with bad hands, how did he make that march up the depth chart?

Per senior receiver Ryan Davis, that diagnosis might've been a bit premature, or the result of a too-small sample size. Cannella, according to Davis, used the offseason to rebuild his hindered confidence, which was lost in part because of drops and part because of little playing time.

"Sal's a great player, has great talent, has great upside, he has size. He brings a different element to the game — he's a big-bodied receiver. He's in the slot, so that's also going to be a matchup problem as well," Davis said. "I feel like he's taken that next step forward, being able to be on the field more. He's earned that. I think he'd lost a little bit of that confidence in himself and I feel like he has regained that. Just having that confidence and swagger about him; if you do drop a pass or you do mess up an assignment, you can come back and bounce back from that."

Taking "that next step" has been a popular phrase about Cannella this fall.

Davis said it. Malzahn, Chip Lindsey and Stidham have described it that way, as well.

Whether or not he does — and whether or not the narrative changes — will be dependent on his early performances in the 2018 season. With a stud freshman like Matthew Hill behind him, there won't be much leeway for Cannella to fall into the same drops trap from a season ago.

For now, sitting atop the slot receiver depth chart, coaches feel as though Cannella has put that stigma behind him.

"He's one of the more improved players that we've had on our team. He's a guy that Stidham trusts. He's not just a receiver. I mean, he can do a lot of different things. He can play with his hand down. He can play H-back, he can play wide receiver, inside outside. He gives the offense a lot of flexibility. And he's improved too.," Malzahn said. "Last year was his first rodeo, and there's nothing like experience."