Baker Mayfield had a perfect reaction to Panthers benching Bryce Young

For a division that most experts and pundits like to forget, the NFC South has been at the epicenter of the NFL world this week .

It started over the weekend when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers marched into Detroit and came away with a statement victory over the Lions. Meanwhile, the New Orleans Saints were in Dallas cooking the Cowboys over an open fire, while the Atlanta Falcons mounted an epic comeback on Monday Night Football in Philly. All of this has prompted some respect to be put on all three teams at a national level, but there's one notable outlier.

The same cannot be said for the Carolina Panthers.

While the Bucs, Saints, and Falcons all soared in Week 2, the Panthers continued to fall deeper into a hole that owner Dave Tepper has dug for the team. It's more like a grave at this point, as nothing is going right in Carolina, something puncuated by the benching of Bryce Young this week.

Less than 24 hours after giving him a vote of confidence, Dave Canales benched Young in favor of Andy Dalton. The move has been one of the top stories throughout the league, which goes to show you how bad things are when that's the thing that gets your team talked about.

Not everyone is dunking on Young, though.

Baker Mayfield's response to Bryce Young getting benched is another example of his leadership

Young's benching comes as both a surprise and a repreve, as it's yet to be seen if the Panthers struggles were solely his fault or more systemtic. The latter is likely true, something that Baker Mayfield has proven ever since escaping Charlotte.

Mayfield was traded to the Panthers in 2022 but was eventually benched and then released before the season was over. That opened a path for him to arrive in Tampa Bay, where he's completely revived his career and is now a $100 million MVP candidate.

So Baker knows a thing or two not only about getting benched by the Panthers but what can happen next. That was the gist of his brilliant answer when asked about Young's benching.

It's an amazing answer not only because it's supportive of Young, but is a well placed zinger at his former team.

What it shows is Baker's maturity, something that Buccaneers fans have been given a front row seat to over the last few seasons. The guy who is leading the team now isn't the one who was drafted No. 1 overall by the Browns in 2018, nor is he the one that showed up in Carolina a few years later.

His journey to the man and player he is today has been amazing to watch, and he has the right perspective to speak on what's happening with Young. The old Baker might have made it all about dunking on his former team, but Buccaneers Baker is wiser beyond those earlier years.

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