Jaycee Horn has always been a stellar cornerback when he's on the field. He's just never on the field. So when he turned in a Pro Bowl season with health (15 games played), the Carolina Panthers rewarded him with a $100 million payday. One insider named him to the NFL's all-overpaid team, unfortunately.
Horn wasn't named the most overpaid cornerback, though. That honor went to Sauce Gardner, with whom it's not a totally insulting thing to be included for Horn. Gardner is a good player, and so is Horn. According to the insider, though, they're not worth the money.
The overall production hasn't been there for the Carolina Panthers star, but that's primarily due to injuries. He's played less than 40 games in his NFL career that began in 2021, but he was finally able to put together a mostly healthy 20254.
Still, Horn landed on the inauspicious overpaid list. "Also 25, Horn has one interception the last two seasons and surrendered six touchdowns in coverage in 2024 but is now making $25 million per year as the third-highest-paid corner in the sport," Brad Gagnon of Bleacher Report said.
It is worth noting that Horn's contract has already aged fairly well, because when it was signed, it was the highest contract for a corner in the NFL, and it has since been outdone twice. Plus, as Benjamin Solak pointed out, the DaRon Bland contract makes it look even better. "I did not have '$8M less than the Jaycee Horn deal' on my bingo card," he posted.
"[Horn] was a Pro Bowler while averaging 6.2 yards allowed per target in his third season, so there were extremes on both sides," Gagnon went on. "But the value just hasn't been there overall, and the Panthers will need a lot more consistency, productivity and big plays from their now-very-rich top cover man."
With a better pass rush helping (the Panthers were among the worst in pressure rate last season), the Panthers cornerback should have to cover for less time, thus helping his stats improve. No one can cover a wide receiver forever, and now, Horn may not have to.
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