It’s a skill that would become Kuechly’s calling card — and one that helped propel him to greatness. A year later, he was named NFL Defensive Player of the Year and led the Panthers to Super Bowl 50 in the 2015 season. McDermott said that had Kuechly continued to play “I have no doubt he would have been considered the best ever. He became the fastest player in NFL history to reach 1,000 career tackles, doing so in 107 career games. “Luke had qualities you can’t teach,” said Fox sports analyst Greg Olsen, a former tight end who played eight seasons with Kuechly in Carolina.