Jaycee Horn Prepares for Pivotal Fourth Year

Matt Alquiza | May 20, 2024

Jan 7, 2024; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn (8) talks with / Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

The talent has always been there for Jaycee Horn. When Carolina selected Horn with the eighth overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, they hoped to select a corner that could lock down one side of the field for years to come. Three seasons, 20 starts, and a full overhaul on the defensive side of the ball later, the Panthers are still waiting for their hopes to come to fruition.

2024 is the most important year of Horn's career, and he's ready to prove to the Panthers, and the NFL as a whole, that the promise he showed at the University of South Carolina is still in him. In his post-practice press conference on Tuesday, Horn sounded confident in his abilities.

Jaycee Horn speaks to the media. https://t.co/4oOjfG907c

— Carolina Panthers (@Panthers) May 20, 2024

“I know what I’m capable of. I still feel like I can be one of the best defensive backs in this league. I just got to be out there to show it…that’s what I’m looking forward to doing.”

When you watch his film, the flashes of talent are evident. Horn has gone toe-to-toe with some of the league's best receivers and lived to tell the tale. In an injury-shortened 2023 season, Horn squared up with NFC South stars Drake London, Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Chris Olave in key divisional matchups. The receivers had their victories against Horn, but they were few and far between due to Horn's combination of size, strength, speed, and instincts that make him a matchup nightmare.

Horn's difficulty is that his natural gifts and talents are rarely on display due to his body breaking down. He's missed 31 games in his three seasons, and questions about his long-term viability as a starter linger. A shift in his training regimen (more heavy lifting like he did as a Gamecock) is a start.

In the cornerback room specifically, Horn is the old head. Troy Hill and Dane Jackson are older than Horn, but Jaycee boasts more experience in Carolina than those two. Horn knows that the defense needs a leader now that Brian Burns and Donte Jackson are elsewhere, and that he's the one who needs to fill their shoes.

“I'm just trying to be more vocal. We had Donte last year, and he was kind of that leader so just learning some stuff from him and just trying to pick up where he left off and just influence the group in a positive way.”

Thankfully for Horn, even though the personell has changed, the defensive staff from last season is still in place. The Carolina defense was staring down the barrel of learning their third system in three years, but the retention of Ejiro Evero and his staff bring continuity to a franchise that has become unfamiliar with the word.

Horn called it a "blessing" that Evero and his staff were retained, and that him and his returning counterparts can begin to "perfect the scheme" instead of learning a brand new one.

Carolina has picked up Horn's fifth-year option, meaning he'll be around through at least 2025, and he's not focused on securing a long-term deal quite yet. He's trying to prove to himself, and the Panthers, that he can play a full season at a demanding position before he locking down his financial future.

“I’m focused on football. I let agents and front office handle all that stuff. I’m just focused on football, putting good tape out there, and most importantly playing the whole season and staying healthy.”

Carolina has a ton of questions marks as the 2024 season rapidly approaches. The defensive backfield is one of them, but a strong season by Jaycee Horn can turn that question mark into an exclamation point if he lives up to the promise he showed evaluators in his time in Columbia, South Carolina.