Can the Panthers avoid folding without Jaycee Horn? More talent, NFC South schedule help

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- When Derrick Brown went down with a season-ending knee injury two games into the 2024 season, the Carolina Panthers' defense went down with him. They'll try to avoid a similar free fall this year.

With Pro Bowl cornerback Jaycee Horn set to miss significant time with a torn quad, the Panthers can't let the wheels come completely off like they did in 2024, when they allowed more points than any team in NFL history while becoming just the fourth team to give up 3,000 rushing yards in a season.

"There's no replacing Jaycee Horn," Panthers coach Dave Canales said Monday. "He has had such an amazing offseason, training camp, in-season. Just the energy, preparation, all the different things have been amazing, really beautiful. So there's no replacing that."

Horn is seeking additional opinions after injuring his quad changing directions while covering his man on Deshaun Watson's game-winning play in the Cleveland Browns' 21-18 victory. Canales wouldn't say whether Horn tore the quad, as the NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported.

But it's not good. Canales said it appears Horn is headed to injured reserve, where it could be a lengthy stay. When discussing Horn's injury, defensive lineman Bobby Brown referenced Horn being out for the season.

That could depend on where the Panthers are physically and otherwise in December. If it's a lost season and Canales is playing out the cards like 2024, there'd be no reason to bring Horn back.

But two factors could keep Carolina's defense and season from imploding in the wake of Horn's injury: The talent on defense is better than the '24 team, and the NFC South is worse.

When linebacker Shaq Thompson tore his Achilles two weeks after Brown's injury in '24, it stripped most of the star power from Ejiro Evero's defense. The Panthers had Horn and Mike Jackson at cornerback, along with a declining Jadeveon Clowney at edge rusher. And that was about it.

The three players who started in Brown's spot the rest of the season were all undrafted free agents: Nick Thurman, LaBryan Ray and DeShawn Williams. Two of them -- Thurman and Williams -- didn't play in another game after 2024, while Ray retired this summer.

Stepping in for Thompson were rookie Trevin Wallace, who was waived at roster cutdowns this year, and a pair of special teams players in Claudin Cherelus and Jacoby Windmon. Horn and right guard Robert Hunt were the team's only Pro Bowlers in '24, which was Canales' first season.

"Obviously, you can't replace Jaycee. He's a helluva player. He is who he is. So it's gonna be hard to do regardless. So taking him off the field, it's an impact," Hunt said.

"But I think we've got some really good players over there that can make up for it. It's definitely not '24. (In) '24 we had a lot of guys rolling in and out in different spots. In one week, out the next. So definitely we've got a core. We're stable. So I don't expect that."

General manager Dan Morgan, a former Panthers linebacker, has invested heavily in the defense after the debacle of two years ago. After signing safety Tre'von Moehrig, outside linebacker Pat Jones and defensive tackle Turk Wharton in '25, he made a bigger splash this past winter with the additions of edge rusher Jaelan Phillips and linebacker Devin Lloyd.

Phillips had a sack in the first two games, while Lloyd was the NFC's Defensive Player of the Week after his dominant performance in a 34-3 win at Atlanta in Week 2. Even with Wharton sidelined for most of his time in Charlotte, Evero has more talent than he did two years ago -- though that didn't stop the Chicago Bears from hanging 59 points on Carolina in Week 1.

What is still unknown is if there's enough corner depth to withstand the loss of Horn, who'd gone to back-to-back Pro Bowls after playing in just 22 of 51 games his first three seasons. An executive with a team on the Panthers' schedule this year views Horn and Jackson -- along with Derrick Brown -- as Carolina's biggest difference-makers on defense.

The Panthers' internal options to replace Horn include rookie Will Lee, nickel corner Chau Smith-Wade, practice-squad member Corey Thornton and veteran Akayleb Evans, who had a potential game-sealing interception against the Browns negated by a roughing the passer penalty on linebacker Bobby Okereke.

Lloyd singled out Evans when talking about life after Horn.

"We're talking about a guy that's irreplaceable. He's just a superstar talent. So for us, I think it's not putting any pressure on anybody to do more than what they're required. It's just everybody doing their job the best way we can and next man up," he said. "A.K. came in and played really well. So we're gonna need him to have another great week of prep and let that translate to the game."

Canales said Morgan also will explore external help. Teams have been calling the Pittsburgh Steelers about cornerback Joey Porter Jr., who is in the final year of his rookie deal and wants to be paid among the highest-paid players at his position.

But it's unlikely Morgan would want to give up a draft pick and meet Porter's contract demands. Doing so would tie up a lot of money at a position where Horn is making $25 million a year, especially with a possible Bryce Young extension coming in the offseason.

Morgan plugged a hole at linebacker by adding established veterans Tyrel Dodson and Okereke. Bringing in a corner familiar with Evero's scheme makes sense.

Lloyd, who sat out the loss to the Browns with a calf injury, said he's playing in this week's prime-time game against Detroit. It would be helpful if Jackson also is back after he left with a groin injury Sunday and didn't return.

A year after the Panthers claimed the NFC South title with a losing record, it's looking again like eight or nine wins will be enough to take the division. Without one of the league's best cover corners, the secondary will suffer through some tough sledding, maybe as soon as Sunday night against Jared Goff.

It won't always be pretty, but it shouldn't be as ugly as '24.

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.