Joe Horn, famous for his cell phone call, gets another call – to Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame – Crescent City Sports

One of the most popular players in the history of the Saints almost never made it to the Crescent City.

Joe Horn was a free agent at the end of the 1999 season after having played for the Kansas City Chiefs.

“I had an opportunity to sign with the Raiders,” Horn said. “Rich Gannon was my quarterback in Kansas City. Rich knew I could play and I was getting ready to go.

“When I visited Louisiana and I got the history … I said I’m not going to go to a franchise that’s already won a Super Bowl. I want to go somewhere where you had to build and try to make it a big thing. That’s why I chose the Saints.”

The rest, as they say, is history.

Horn was named Wednesday as one of eight competitive ballot inductees for the Class of 2026 into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame.

“It’s absolutely special,” Horn said Wednesday on All Access with Ken Trahan on 106.7 The Ticket. “I’m very humbled by the honor.”

Horn played seven years (2000-06) with the Saints, catching 523 passes for an average of 14.6 yards per catch with 50 touchdowns. He reached four career Pro Bowls.

“I tried to bring a swagger every day – every practice, every game,” Horn said. “I always wanted to (bring) an attitude and bring a swagger so when gameday came, I wanted to have fun.”

After not catching more than 35 passes in four seasons with the Chiefs, Horn caught 78 or more passes in each of the next five seasons, including a pair of 94-catch seasons, and topped the 1,000-yard mark four times.

Horn credited new Saints offensive coordinator Mike McCarthy, who would go on to win a Super Bowl with the Green Bay Packers.

“I knew Mike was going to get me the ball,” Horn said. “He was going to find a way to get a quarterback in and throw his guys the ball.”

While Horn played on two division champion teams in his time in New Orleans – bookend seasons during his time here – arguably the most famous moment of his career came on Dec. 14, 2003.

After scoring a touchdown against the New York Giants, Horn reached under the padding of the goalpost and pulled out a cell phone, keeping a promise to his son he would call.

“I had a phone in just one (end zone). I had to score in that end zone.”

The most challenging time of Horn’s career – and probably anyone that was a part of the 2005 Saints team – was dealing with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Like most New Orleanians, the Saints were displaced to San Antonio and played home games that year at the Alamodome, Tiger Stadium and even Giants Stadium.

“It was a devastating time for us, but we all got through it,” Horn said.

At the time, Horn criticized the NFL for forcing the Saints to play a “home” game against the Giants at the Meadowlands.

He also recalled behind-closed-doors conversations with then-NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue about the future of the franchise. He told Tagliabue he would retire if the Saints didn’t return to New Orleans and instead stayed in San Antonio.

Thirteen months after Katrina’s wrath, Horn was there on Sept. 25, 2006, for the “Domecoming” game against the Atlanta Falcons.

“I don’t have a physical Super Bowl ring,” he said, “but every time I come over that bridge and see the Dome, I know I was a part of that Dome being re-opened again.”

Twenty years after his final game in a Saints uniform, Horn will get his due in Natchitoches.

The 2026 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame induction weekend is scheduled for June 25-27.

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