JACKSONVILLE, Fla.— The Panthers' defense left Jacksonville with a lot to retool, from run defense to quick-change situations and more.

But after an offseason of harping on creating more turnovers, Jaycee Horn ensured his defense left Jacksonville with at least one in that column.

The Jaguars were facing second-and-24 from their own 14-yard line in the third quarter. Trevor Lawrence knew he needed chunk yardage and tried to send one down the left hashmarks, while the entire Panthers defense played off the line of scrimmage. Lawrence loaded up and let it fly, looking for Travis Hunter, who already had his hands out for the play.

Before it could get there, Horn stuck his right hand into the path of the ball and pulled it down for the one-handed interception.

"Nick Scott did a good job of helping me on the dig, and I saw him take that away," Horn explained after the Panthers' Week 1 game.

"T-Law looked like he wanted to go there first, and then I just kicked high, playing off the quarterback and had a chance to make a play on the ball."

From near the line of scrimmage, outside linebacker D.J. Wonnum saw the Panthers' Pro Bowl corner turn and read the route, putting himself in position to make a momentum-swinging play.

"Oh man, I just saw he made a great play," smiled Wonnum. "He read the quarterback. He saw a little flair come out on top of him, and he's a ballhawk. He's a great player, and he made a great play."

The defense had allowed a score on four of the six Jaguars drives to that point. A chance to give the offense the ball back in a three-possession game was crucial. And as has been the case in years past, when the defense needed to make a play, Horn stepped up, giving his unit a boost when needed most.

Unfortunately, the offense wasn't able to convert the turnover into points, stalling on downs. As they work to play better complementary football moving forward, though, it is plays and performances like that from Horn that can make a difference.

"Absolutely, you know what I'm saying, we need that," said Wonnum. "It starts there, and those are the types of plays he makes all the time, so just having him on our defense, you know what I'm saying, it's just another load of confidence that we have."