Panthers' $100 million star classified as 'massive' overpay among worst in NFL

The Carolina Panthers' biggest move this offseason was arguably an extension for one of their own players. They spent $100 million on a four-year extension for Jaycee Horn, a bit of a surprise given his injury history. However, Carolina wanted to keep him and rewarded him for playing 15 games in 2024.

Nonetheless, Horn's history is dotted with health issues. Even when he is healthy and playing well, he hasn't quite been the best cornerback in football, which is what the Panthers paid him as. Some contracts have since passed him, and more will in the near future, but Horn's contract was one of Bleacher Report insider Kristopher Knox's worst deals in football. In fact, he ranked it the sixth-worst, worse than Kirk Cousins, Bradley Chubb, Chase Young, L'Jarius Snead, and Brandon Aiyuk.

Jaycee Horn deal brutally ripped by B/R analyst

Consider Kristopher Knox among those who are decidedly not a fan of the Jaycee Horn extension. "Horn is a quality starter who will turn just 26 in November. However, he's not truly elite, and he missed significant time in 2021 and 2023—with foot and hamstring injuries, respectively," Knox said. "He played just 13 games in 2022 and 15 in 2024. When he signed an extension worth $25 million annually, he was, at that time, the league's highest-paid corner in terms of yearly salary."

Knox claims Horn has had just one good and healthy season (2024) and called the $100 million extension "an unnecessary gamble." He did admit that the contract could look reasonable pretty soon, but Horn would have to stay healthy and get better. "Carolina had the opportunity to allow Horn to further prove himself on the fifth-year option in 2025 and, if necessary, via the franchise tag in 2026," he finished. He also said they "massively overpaid" here.

The Panthers may have jumped the gun this time, but they wanted to extend Horn and get that deal out of the way. They overpaid a little as a result, but cornerback contracts are likely about to explode with Sauce Gardner and Trent McDuffie among those set to cash in pretty soon. Still, for the time being, Horn is a costly investment.