Carolina Panthers star blasts fiery message to teammates

The Carolina Panthers signed cornerback Jaycee Horn to a four-year, $100 million contract extension earlier this week, and Horn already seems pumped to start the 2025 NFL campaign.

The Panthers went just 5-12 this past season and had the worst defense in league history, and Horn is prepared to get started on changing that.

Following his massive new deal that made him the highest-paid defensive back ever, Horn sent an urgent message to his teammates ahead of next season.

"Now I feel like it's a year we have to make a change, it's time to go, it's attitude," Horn told reporters, via Darin Gantt of the Panthers' team website. "We should be pissed off when we get to Week 1, especially about the performance we had as a defense. We were on the wrong side of history in some categories and how much we gave up. To me, and I feel like to anybody on that defense, if you're a part of it, that should piss you off."

Horn himself was terrific in 2024, registering 68 tackles, a couple of sacks, an interception and 13 passes defended en route to his first Pro Bowl appearance. But he is still holding himself to a much higher standard and doesn't want to waste any time.

"So I feel like, just going to OTAs, we've got to tighten up on a lot of the details and just have a different attitude when it comes to approaching this next season and realizing that it starts right now," added Horn.

Carolina actually did show considerable promise during the back half of this past year, particularly over the final several weeks of the regular season when the Panthers went 2-1. As a result, some are viewing them as a sleeper team in the NFC South.

However, Horn is right: nothing is going to change in Carolina unless the defense displays dramatic improvement in 2025.

Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn. — Dec 24, 2022; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn (8) runs onto the field during pregame warm ups against the Detroit Lions at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

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