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Late last week word spread through the NFL grapevine that a 12-year veteran receiver was announcing his retirement. Joe Horn came from obscurity to have some impressive seasons with the New Orleans Saints, but he is likely to be remembered for…something else.

After attending high school in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Horn was all set to attend the University of South Carolina, but poor SAT scores prevented that from happening. Instead, he attended Itawamba Community College for the 1991 and 1992 seasons and drew virtually zero attention with his performance on the football field. He returned to North Carolina without a pro football offer until May of 1995, when the CFL’s Shreveport Pirates drafted him. Within months he was dealt to the CFL’s Memphis Mad Dogs, which is where he made his pro debut.

Horn must have made an impression while in Memphis because the Kansas City Chiefs spent a fifth-round pick on him in the 1996 NFL Draft. He hung on in KC, playing special teams and making 53 catches for 879 yards and seven touchdowns in his four seasons there. Struggling for playing time, Horn signed a free agent deal with New Orleans in 2000. Horn’s slow climb up the NFL ladder continued as he was named a starter for the Saints and—after racking up 1,340 yards on 94 catches while finding the end zone eight times—became a well-known NFL commodity in year one of his Crescent City career. Kansas City must have been wondering who that guy was. They’d wonder even more over the next several seasons. Horn tallied four seasons of over 1,200 yards in his first five campaigns in New Orleans and was rewarded with four Pro Bowl trips.

For various reasons, including injuries, his Saints career wound down over the 2005-2006 seasons and Horn was asked to take a pay cut. He refused, asked to be released, and the Saints obliged him. Horn was not the first, nor will he be the last player to overestimate his value on the open market. The Falcons, seemingly always in need of a receiver, signed Horn in 2007, but it was clear that he was no longer the player he was during his salad days in New Orleans. Atlanta cut ties with Horn after a disappointing 12-game season of just 27 grabs for 243 yards.

The 38-year-old receiver has been unable to catch on with a team since then, justifiably so. A few days ago he signed the token one-day contract with the Saints, the team where he made his mark, so he could retire in the Gold and Black. He had a solid career in New Orleans and was very much a part of the team’s Katrina relief efforts, so it’s understanding that Horn would want to hang ‘em up as a Saint. But he won’t be remembered outside New Orleans for his Pro Bowl seasons or his work on behalf of the people around the Gulf. No, Joe Horn will be remembered for a phone call.

In 2003, Horn’s Saints took on the New York Giants on Sunday Night Football. It would be the sixth in a series of eight consecutive losses to end the season for the Giants, and the 45-7 beat down was the bow on the “you’re fired” package Jim Fassel would soon receive. With the score 10-7, Horn made the play for which he will be remembered…the play that will overshadow his Pro Bowl seasons. Horn made a nice catch of an Aaron Brooks pass in the end zone. When he scored—and he scored four times that night, something that gets lost in the discussion—he reached up under the padding of the goal posts and pulled out a cell phone. He proceeded to make a “call” to his kids to tell them he’d scored. The rest, after a fine and some well-deserved controversy, is history. Even as a Giants fan, I had to tip my cap to the guy; it was an original celebration, and he put that phone there before the game, essentially saying, “WHEN I score, I’m going to use this.” Was it a “look at me!” move? Of course, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t help the team at the same time…like the other three scores Horn had that night.

When asked if he regretted the premeditated stunt, Horn replied, “Would I take it back? No, no. I knew exactly what I was doing. And I understand… I'm quite sure that I'll be fined.” He did, and he was. But he didn’t care.

Fan and player reaction was mixed. Some of us thought it was clever and flat out entertaining, while others found it classless. Whichever side you come down on, you remember the play, the celebration…and you remember Joe Horn.