CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Carolina Panthers on Monday acquired cornerback CJ Henderson and a fifth-round pick from the Jacksonville Jaguars for tight end Dan Arnold and a third-round pick, the teams announced.
The Panthers’ 2021 first-round pick, cornerback Jaycee Horn, is out for an extended time, possibly for the season, with multiple broken bones in his right foot.
The Panthers liked Henderson, the ninth pick of the 2020 draft, coming out of Florida.
It’s an aggressive move for a 3-0 Carolina team that leads the NFC South by a game over Tampa Bay (2-1) and New Orleans (2-1) heading into Sunday’s game at Dallas.
Horn, son of former NFL wide receiver Joe Horn, suffered the injury in the third quarter of Thursday night’s 24-9 win at Houston. Coach Matt Rhule confirmed Friday that Horn suffered three broken bones in the noncontact injury and would be out indefinitely.
Carolina signed Arnold to a two-year deal during the offseason in an attempt to upgrade the tight end position. He caught only seven passes for 84 yards in the first three games with no touchdowns.
The decision to move on from Arnold speaks volumes to what Rhule thinks of 2021 third-round pick Tommy Tremble out of Notre Dame. Rhule recently referred to Tremble as this year’s Jeremy Chinn.
Chinn was a strong candidate for NFL Rookie of the Year in 2020 as an outside linebacker/safety.
The Panthers spent the weekend looking for Horn’s replacement. They also inquired about Pro Bowl cornerback Richard Sherman, 33, a league source told ESPN.
Henderson, 22, gives Carolina a younger option with veterans A.J. Bouye and Rashaan Melvin already on the roster. Carolina likes Bouye more as a nickelback.
Henderson started eight games in 2020 before shoulder and groin injuries sidelined him for the rest of the season. He started the first two games but missed this past week’s game with a groin injury suffered in Week 2 against Denver.
