With or without Jaycee Horn, the Carolina Panthers are not deep at the cornerback position. And for the next few installments of offseason practices, they’ll be without him.
That, however, didn’t seem to bother head coach Frank Reich too much on Thursday. Following this morning’s session of organized team activities, Reich was asked how much of a concern Horn’s latest injury is for his defense.
“Not concerned,” he replied. “This offseason, obviously, with CJ [Henderson] not takin’ some reps and Donte [Jackson] not takin’ reps—so our secondary guys got a lot of work. This injury to Jaycee, thankfully, it’s a non-surgical injury—and so he should be ready for training camp. But I love the work our secondary’s done. Gives us a lot of confidence in our guys.”
Horn sustained an injury to his left ankle and foot during a recent workout. The third-year defender, who missed 17 games between 2021 and 2022, will sit out the rest of OTAs as well as the upcoming minicamp.
As noted by Reich, the Panthers have also been dealing with injuries to fellow corners CJ Henderson and Donte Jackson, who tore his Achilles tendon last season. Other current options on the roster include Keith Taylor Jr., Stantley Thomas-Oliver III, Eric Rowe, Herb Miller and a trio of undrafted rookies.