To be sure, Jaycee Horn wants to make his first Pro Bowl in 2023. Being recognized as an All-Pro also is something he’s thought about. But the primary goal for the Panthers cornerback for Year 3 is to get through an entire season healthy.
The way Horn sees it, the two are interrelated.
“Obviously, I can’t control some of the injuries I had. That’s nobody’s fault, here or there,” Horn said last week during a 15-minute phone interview. “I’ve got to be available, be on the field, and goals like that — that stuff will take care of itself with playing good football.”
Advertisement
Horn looks like a player poised to join the ranks of the NFL’s elite cornerbacks. He and Panthers defensive tackle Derrick Brown both made NFL.com analyst and former NFL scout Bucky Brooks’ all-breakout team for 2023.
Horn is still just 23 — younger than two of the Panthers’ five draft picks this year. He’s coming off a season in which he led the Panthers with three interceptions and tied for the team lead (with Brown) with seven pass breakups despite missing the last two games with a broken wrist.
GO DEEPER
Jeremy Chinn leads list of 10 players the Panthers need to step up in 2023
It was the second year in a row that Horn’s season was cut short by an injury. The first-round pick from South Carolina saw his rookie year end in Week 3 after he broke three bones in his right foot while backpedaling on the artificial surface in Houston.
Horn has seen suggestions on social media that he’s injury prone. But the son of former NFL receiver Joe Horn brushed off the criticism as quickly as he sheds blocks on the perimeter.
“None of that stuff ever bothered me because I’m the one out there trying to get it done. It’s just been unfortunate injuries,” he said. “It’s been all bone breaks, no soft tissue or anything. Just cracked bones. I can’t control that, man. All I can do is try to play some good football when I’m out there and try to take all the precautionary measures to stay on the field. Outside of that, it’s in God’s hands.”
A rib injury sidelined Horn for two games in October last season. But he returned and was in the midst of the best — and longest — stretch of football in his career when he was hurt again in a Dec. 24 win against Detroit on “friendly fire” from safety Jeremy Chinn. While Horn was tackling Lions receiver Josh Reynolds after a 26-yard pickup, Chinn ran in to help and slammed into Horn’s left wrist.
Horn underwent surgery three days later, making him unavailable for the Panthers’ Week 17 game at Tampa Bay. Had the Panthers won, they would have gone to New Orleans for the regular-season finale with a chance to win the NFC South. There was talk of Horn wearing protective padding and playing, either against the Saints or in the playoffs. Neither came to pass.
Advertisement
“It was a possibility,” he said. “We had talked about it, but we didn’t end up making it to the playoffs, so we didn’t get it done.”
Instead, Horn rested and let the bone continue to heal in preparation for the offseason program. Unlike last year when he was still rehabbing his foot, Horn has been a full participant this spring.
GO DEEPER
Panthers mailbag: Big workload for Miles Sanders? What will they do with cap space?
“This is kind of like my real first full offseason,” he said. “I’m in a good spot right now.”
In a way, Horn’s in a similar spot to his rookie season — learning an entirely new defensive scheme after the Panthers’ coaching change. Horn sounded excited about working with a new staff, from head coach Frank Reich to defensive coordinator Ejiro Evero and secondary/cornerbacks coach Jonathan Cooley.
“Getting new coaches in, that’s always good for a player just to be able to hear stuff you can work on from a different voice, a new voice. You get to learn all types of new techniques and learn ways to make your job easier as a corner,” he said. “So that’s kind of been my favorite thing about the offseason so far.”
Cooley, the former Rams assistant, was discussing the Panthers secondary during a recent video call with reporters. He mentioned the group’s youth and the way everyone has embraced learning new terminology and techniques, as Horn referenced.
“Most of them are relatively young. As far as the younger guys, Jaycee’s in his first contract. He’s done an excellent job for us,” Cooley said. “Every day they’re just excited to be at work and trying to do things to get better at their craft.”
Horn is pretty stoked in general, stemming from an eventful Panthers offseason.
“Obviously, got the No. 1 pick and were able to grab Bryce (Young),” he said. “It’s a whole new vibe and a new excitement around the building. I’m just excited for the season to start.”
Horn has lined up opposite Young the past couple of weeks during OTAs. His first impression of the former Alabama quarterback: “He’s a really good player. He’s just really sharp, makes pretty nice throws. It’s just exciting. I’m excited to watch him when we get to Week 1.”
GO DEEPER
Panthers' roster holes: 5 spots GM Scott Fitterer should address before season
If Horn was pumped about the Panthers’ first draft pick, he was equally enthused about their last pick — fifth-rounder Jammie Robinson, a safety who played with Horn for two seasons at South Carolina before transferring to Florida State.
“It was exciting when he got his name called,” Horn said. “I know the type of player he is, how much of a dog he is and how much he can help us in the back end.”
Advertisement
Robinson was known as a physical tackler in college, but he’s impressed coaches with his coverage during rookie minicamp and OTAs.
“Jammie can do it all,” Horn added. “He can make big hits. He can cover, good ball skills — an all-around DB.”
That’s a great description of Horn, as well. The 6-foot-1, 200-pounder has never been afraid to play press coverage or challenge receivers — verbally or otherwise, as he did during joint practices with the Colts during his first training camp in 2021. Horn also is effective in run support: He had five games with six tackles last season, including a Week 14 game at Seattle during which he also picked off a pass and broke up another.
Horn’s all-around skills extend to the basketball court … to a point, anyway. Horn dates former South Carolina guard Brea Beal, who has been working out in Charlotte since getting cut by the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx in May. Horn will rebound for Beal when they go to the gym and occasionally will try to match up with her.
“If we do some one-on-ones, I might can get her,” Horn said. “But if we do any type of shooting drill or anything like that, she’ll be killing me in those.”
Otherwise, Horn sticks with football. He’s fired up about the “weapons” in the Panthers secondary, from newcomers like Robinson and Vonn Bell to holdovers such as Chinn, who inadvertently knocked Horn out of action last season.
Horn laughed when asked if he made Chinn buy him a steak dinner to compensate for the lost playing time.
“Maybe I should have. But it’s all good. That’s my guy. He plays real fast and stuff like that happens in combat,” he said. “We play a dangerous sport. I just had bad luck these first two years. So hopefully I can stay on the field this next year.”
(Top photo: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)
