The Panthers offensive coaching staff is very familiar with Budda Baker. They coached against him two games a year for six years. That’s why Dave Canales not only knows what Baker can do on the field, but also how important he is to the entire defense.

“He really is the heart and soul, the heartbeat of what they do, and everyone responds to him,” Canales said Friday.

Baker is currently second in the league with 142 tackles, a key part of what Canales described as “just relentless attitude, attack, toughness.”

However, doing all of this from the safety position doesn’t make Baker just a heat-seeking missile. He’s a chess piece the Panthers will need to be aware of every step of the way on Sunday.

“Plus, he’s really smart,” Canales continued. “He is an intelligent player. It’s not a guy who just walks around, you know. He has a plan and a goal for what he does, and mixing all of those things together is what impresses this guy.”

Bryce Young added: “He just has the talent to be on the ball, the role he plays, you see that a lot throughout the league, but he plays it so well.”

“I mean, just being able to be around the ball, making so many instinctive plays, playing smart, playing fast. So for us it’s something we have to accept, we have to take it into account, in the game, in the passing game. “Make sure we take it into account… that’s going to be a unique challenge for us.”