Carolina Panthers defensive back Jaycee Horn is the son of former wide receiver Joe Horn. We’d imagine the duo have lined up across from each other during backyard football family gatherings, the younger Horn trying to stop his dad from securing a touchdown.
Joe Horn certainly had a memorable NFL career. He was inducted into the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame and gave us one of the best touchdown celebrations ever. Now, he’s having a proud papa moment: His son just signed the largest contract for a defensive back in NFL history.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Jaycee Horn and the Panthers agreed to a four-year contract extension worth at least $100 million. The deal could be worth up to $108 million in total and included $70 million guaranteed. The $25 million per year is a higher average annual value than any defensive back has ever received.
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Horn, the No. 8 selection of the 2021 NFL Draft, is coming off the best season of his career. He recorded 68 tackles and two sacks across 15 games, intercepting one pass and defending 13 others. He reached his first Pro Bowl as a result. Before last season, Horn had only played in 29 out of a possible 51 games, injuries hampering his production.
While Horn was generally a bright spot, the Panthers defense as a whole was quite bad. The team gave up an NFL-record 534 and had the worst point differential in the league, surrending 193 more points than it scored.
The Panthers had the NFL’s worst record two seasons ago, winning just two games. Last year wasn’t much better, as they limped out to a 1-7 start before finishing 5-12. Carolina has had seven losing seasons in a row; it’s still never had back-to-back seasons with a record above .500 in its entire team history.
Yet Carolina knows the importance of hanging onto its young talent, and the team has set the market for defensive backs with this move. Signing Horn alone won’t turn the franchise around immediately. However, having an anchor among the defense for years to come is a step in the right direction.
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