The Carolina Panthers are getting out the paycheck for defensive back Jaycee Horn. The Panthers and the Pro Bowler have agreed to a four-year, $100 million deal, worth up to $108 million, CBS Sports NFL insider Jonathan Jones confirms. The new contract includes $70 million guaranteed, according to ESPN, and puts Horn at $25 million a year, making him the highest-paid defensive back in NFL history.
The extension keeps him in Carolina through the 2029 season.
Jalen Ramsey was the former highest-paid defensive back in the league at $24.1 million a year, followed by Patrick Surtain II at $24 million, Jaire Alexander at $21 million, AJ Terrell at $20.25 million and Denzel Ward at $20.1 million.
Horn still had one more year left on his existing contract, after the team picked up the fifth-year option on his rookie deal last offseason. After the season, Panthers general manager Dan Morgan emphasized that extending Horn was high on the team’s to-do list, saying he wanted to finalize a deal “sooner than later.” Morgan called Horn “focal point of the defense,” saying the cornerback was someone he wanted in Carolina on a long-term deal.
In 2024, the 25-year-old finished with 68 combined tackles, 2.0 sacks and one interception in 15 games, his best year statistically. He had the fifth-most total tackles on the team and the sixth-most sacks.
2025 NFL free agency tracker: Updates on top 100 free agents, including Sam Darnold, Justin Fields, other vets
Cody Benjamin
Horn has played in Carolina for his entire career, drafted as the No. 8 overall pick in 2021. He’s recorded 153 tackles, 26 pass deflections, five interceptions and two sacks so far in his career. In four seasons, he’s started in all 37 games he’s played in.
The Panthers finished 5-12 last season, third in the NFC South.
Read the full article here
