David Newton of ESPN reports that the Panthers are willing to pay top dollar to retain CB Jaycee Horn, as they view him as a cornerstone of their franchise.
Neither side has approached the other about extension talks at this point, given that Carolina wants to see Horn play a full season and remain healthy before such talks take place.
The team recently exercised Horn’s fifth-year option back in April, even though he has only played in 22 games, the second-fewest by a cornerback drafted in the top ten over the last 20 years.
Panthers TE Jordan Matthews compared Horn to veteran CB Jalen Ramsey of the Dolphins.
“I call him Hundred Million Horn because that’s how much he’s worth,” Matthews said of Horn. “I’m just praying for health over him so he can show people what he can really do…He reminds me a lot of [Jalen] Ramsey — long, extremely athletic, very smart too. Competitive as all get-out. He can shut down half the field.”
The first three seasons of Horn’s career have not been easy, including missing 14 games as a rookie and 10 games last season due to a non-contact injury.
“I mean, that’s how it is playing football when you have the game taken away from you and that’s all you know,” Horn said. “It’s tough — even tougher when you’ve got to deal with it in consecutive years. I just remind myself there’s people who are way worse off. I just keep putting one foot in front of the other trying to make it happen.”
“I see what a lot of these other top corners are doing,” Horn continued. “I feel I’m capable of doing the same thing. I’ve just got to be on the field. If I’m out there all year, I’ll be able to say I’m one of the top.”
Horn, 24, was the No. 8 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft by the Panthers out of South Carolina. He is the son of former NFL WR Joe Horn, who was a four-time Pro Bowler as a member of the Saints.
He’s entering the final year of a four-year, $21,112,145 rookie contract with the Panthers that includes a $12,714,287 signing bonus and is set to earn a base salary of $1.055 million for 2024. The fifth-year option for Horn will cost the Panthers $12.472 million for 2025.
In 2023, Horn appeared in six games for the Panthers and recorded 27 tackles, one tackle for loss, and five pass defenses.
We will have more on Horn as it becomes available.
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