After Record Deal, Panthers’ Jaycee Horn Says Corners Deserve a Bigger Payday

The former first-round pick, who signed a $100 million contract this month, said cornerback is the hardest position in football behind only quarterback.

Jaycee Horn #8 of the Carolina Panthers takes the field before the game against the Dallas Cowboys at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C., on Dec. 15, 2024. Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images

After signing a record-setting contract, Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn says his fellow DBs deserve more money.

In an interview with NFL Network’s “The Insiders” on Tuesday, Horn said that cornerback is the second-hardest position in football, behind quarterback. Horn, who briefly set the record for highest-paid cornerback in the NFL, called the contract “life-changing money” and said it was a dream come true.

He also opined that now that wide receivers are approaching the $40 million a year mark, cornerbacks deserve to make as much.

“It’s surreal,” Horn said of his contract. “Like, you almost don’t know how to feel because you dream about that day. You hope, since you pick up a football, having, making life-changing money, getting to that second contract, that’s the main goal when you come [into] the league. And then when you actually do it, it’s like, man, it’s a surreal feeling. But now I’m just ready to get back to work and prove that I am worth that money.”

Horn signed a 4-year, $100 million contract at the beginning of free agency. According to Spotrac, that contract is the second-highest among defensive backs in terms of total value.

His $25 million annual salary briefly made him the highest-paid cornerback in the NFL; that record was broken last week by Houston Texans cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., who signed a 3-year, $90 million extension with the team.

Horn said that the contract values are not on par with top-tier wide receivers, and that corners should be paid the same because of the difficulty of the position.

“I feel like we should be making what they’re making or more, just because our job—I feel like outside of quarterback, it’s the hardest job on the field,” he said. “And it takes a lot to be able to play corner. But it is what it is. It’s all life-changing money. So you can’t complain too much about it.”

Wide receiver contracts have soared in recent years. Eight wide receivers make more than $30 million a year, and Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase became the highest-paid non-quarterback in the entire league with a 4-year, $161 million deal, with an average annual salary of $40.25 million per year.

Horn’s comments were affirmed by Stingley after he signed his contract.

“Receivers are starting to touch $40 million [annually],” Stingley told ESPN on March 19. “[We’re] the people that are going out there and competing against them. I think it’s good that the cornerback position and other defensive positions are starting to get up there, too.

“But I think it’s just good for the sport. Obviously, with time, it’s gonna keep on going up, so I’m excited to see who is gonna make [the next] deal like that.”

Horn also pointed out that the contract represents the Panthers’ faith in him despite his struggles with injuries.

“What I’ve been through injury-wise, ups and downs of that. They stuck beside me the whole time and let me know that if I go handle my business on the field and play good football, they were going to take care of me. ... And now I’m just ready to change this defense around and bring some winning football back to Carolina,” he said.

The son of former NFL wide receiver Joe Horn, Jaycee Horn was drafted by the Panthers out of South Carolina with the eighth overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. But he has struggled with injuries and has never played a full 17 games in his career so far.

He played just three games in his rookie season due to a fractured foot. He played 13 games in 2022, racking up 53 total tackles, seven pass defenses, and three interceptions before a broken wrist ended his season. He played just six games in 2023 due to a hamstring injury. In 2024, he played 15 games, totaling 68 tackles and 13 pass defenses, with one interception; he missed the Panthers’ final two games due to a hip injury.

Horn said that his injury history caused him to doubt whether he would get to that sought-after second contract.

“I'd be lying to you if I said I didn’t have any doubts,” he said. “When you’re missing full seasons...of course you’re going to have the doubts. But I stayed confident in who I was as a player, and I knew if I just put a season together where I showed what I could do, everything would work itself out.”