Carolina Panthers 2026 off-season fan mailbag: Jaycee Horn trade scenario, Super Bowl rooting guide, Joe Brady, and MORE!
Jan 10, 2026; Charlotte, NC, USA; Carolina Panthers cornerback Jaycee Horn (8) reacts after the NFC Wild Card Round game at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn ImagesHello CSR! Welcome to Brian Answers, part two of your weekly Panthers fan mailbag for everyone! We're getting through all your burning questions in a week full of winter storms throughout the country. Let's lock in!
Bruce Guild: You can only keep one of our current starting corners. Who are you keeping and why?
PantherBlueBlood: This will not be popular, but, what do you think about trading Jaycee with his high market value for 1st round pick this year and a third round pick next year. Let's roll with Thornton & Jackson as our starting corners next year. We held on to Cam too long. It is time to move on from Jaycee too. Note: I love Jaycee
I decided to lump the first two questions together because they basically touch on the same subject. To answer the first one, I'm sorry cap space/draft pick enthusiasts, but I'm keeping Jaycee Horn with basically no questions asked. I know Mike Jackson had himself a stellar campaign in 2025 to build on what was already an impressive 2024 season when he was acquired for pennies on the dollar to be a solid starting cornerback. This is by no means me taking away from Mike Jack, but Jaycee Horn is on a different level. He is a shutdown corner with every tool to thrive in any scheme.
To answer the second question, while the trade in itself isn't necessarily bad, you're basically taking the only position with strength on defense and creating a need by trading Horn away. So while that first round pick could be anything (it could even be another Jaycee Horn!), it means you need to then replace Horn, who is already one of maybe 2 or 3 foundational pieces on this defense, and a foundational player for this team as a whole. I also think that by taking Horn out of the equation, the guys around him aren't going to fair nearly as well. Mike Jackson goes from being a strong CB2 to being the number one guy, and he'd be backed up by Chau Smith-Wade (who I like), and Corey Thornton, who I also like but I don't know how he fairs being thrown into a 75-90% snap count compared to the rotational snaps he got in 2025. Not to mention, trading Horn as his contract stands doesn't really help the Panthers a ton in 2026. Maybe its worth revisiting in 2027, but in my opinion, not worth it this off-season.
CasualFanAlso: Any stats on how a back fares after two blow outs of the same knee as Brooks has had?
I don't really have any official stats on this, because I'm sure there are many running backs with injury problems that never got back to form. Frank Gore is probably one of the few I can remember and both of his major knee injuries happened in college. Its not looking good, but at least Carolina isn't appearing to put themselves in a position to rely on him coming back and being a bell cow. I'm hoping for the guy, but I am only optimistic at best right now.
KeepPounding88: As someone who likes the Seahawks more than the Patriots, but Maye more than Darnold, who should I root for in the Super Bowl?
I think if that's where you stand, default to the NFC as your team to root for. Usually if I don't have any particular reason to root one way or the other, I go for the NFC just because its the Panthers conference. Personally, I would like to see Sam Darnold win a Super Bowl, number one because it would cause chaos among fans of teams that have QBs drafted along side him, and maybe it'll teach a lesson that we shouldn't quit on players too soon into their development, especially at that particular position. And no, this isn't a Bryce Young opinion, in general quarterbacks aren't coming out of college ready for NFL systems. Maybe a lesson in patience will help.
MadMatInc: Joe Brady new Bills HC. Any thoughts?
The whole Bills situation is weird, but objectively I like the move, at least in the sense of trying to remain competitive. Clearly, Josh Allen works well within the game plan Joe Brady calls, and there shouldn't be a ton of turnover from a scheme standpoint since Brady likely won't have much of a hand in the defense, similar to how Carolina is with Dave Canales. I also am just happy for Joe, he really got shafted in Carolina when Matt Rhule was trying to survive in a really bad era of Panthers football. It may not work out for the Bills, but I think its worth a shot before a complete demolition of the coaching staff and/or front office.
@WTMealey: Super bowl party or stay at home. I'm of the mindset that this is the last real football for a loooong time. I want to soak it in not discuss random topics unrelated to the game or random game things like why is that one spitting out his water or why do they have different color shoes meanwhile it's 3rd and goal with 7 seconds left in the half
Since the Panthers are rarely in the Super Bowl, I personally enjoy going to a Super Bowl party. That's the best way to enjoy the full experience of the spectacle in my opinion. You get a collection of different fans enjoying the pinnacle of the NFL season each year. Now, I've learned my lesson when MY team is in the Super Bowl. I don't think my friends enjoyed seeing my trauma from the 2015 Super Bowl. When there's personal stakes on the line, I just stay home. Maybe I'll get the chance to do that again sometime.
Galadhron: Do you think Darnold throws at the one or do they run it in to win??
I think you dial up the Sam Darnold QB draw, something he did well in Carolina. So, yes?
dayneb12: How do the Panthers handle the salary cap this offseason? There's only about $9M currently and not a lot of cutable contracts.
They can restructure or give a few extensions to free up cap, but I do think someone like A'Shawn Robinson deserves to be around, but could still be cut just because Carolina has less cap than expected, thanks to making the playoffs and paying out some incentives I don't think they expected to. They can be creative with the signing bonuses and structure of some free agent contracts as well, since they have a lot more projected cap space next season to play with.
schrodingersblackcat: If you're Dave Canales, what will you do differently over this off season to ensure we don't come out of the gate in 2026 looking as embarrassingly unprepared as we have the past two seasons?
What is your approach to preparing Bryce for 2026 knowing he has struggled badly for multiple games at the start of three straight seasons?
I think the easiest way to ensure a faster start is to have as much continuity on offense as possible. This was a very young team going into 2025, and I don't expect any major changes on offense aside from adding pieces along the offensive line and potentially another receiving threat or two at WR or TE. Obviously, everyone is also going to point to preseason snaps, but I think in general just building on the foundation of what they did well in 2025 will help. I think the same answer applies to Bryce Young, but he really needs to feel comfortable as quickly as possible. I think lean on the run game, and make him focus on the fundamentals and technique. All easier said than done.
schrodingersblackcat: Also, if we lose Evero to another team, do you expect Canales to give the new DC as long a leash as he seems to have given Evero.
I gave you a bonus. Firstly, I don't expect Ejiro Evero to get signed as a head coach at this point. But if he does, I think two seasons of work isn't exactly a long leash". Evero's defense had a terrible 2024, but as we've gone over many times, that defense as a whole was just bad from a personnel standpoint, really bad. In 2o25, they improved to about average and helped this team win a few games they probably shouldn't have. If two seasons with improvement in the following year is a long leash, we're going to cycle through a lot of defensive coordinators.
That's all for this week, Panthers fans! Join us for another round of questions soon. KEEP POUNDING!