He was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs in the fifth round of the 1996 NFL draft, and also played for the New Orleans Saints, the Atlanta Falcons, and the Memphis Mad Dogs of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the Iowa Central Tritons.
Horn attended Douglas Byrd High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina, where he played for legendary coach Bob Paroli.
Horn was also a standout basketball player in which he started every game for the Douglas Byrd Eagles as a point guard.
Still unable to qualify for Division I college football, he returned to Fayetteville and worked at a fast food restaurant and at a furniture factory.
After playing two years at Itawamba Community College in Fulton, Mississippi, Horn worked at a Bojangles' restaurant in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
Horn then made a highlight video of himself working out and sent the tape to multiple professional teams across the United States and Canada.
Horn signed with the New Orleans Saints in 2000 and ranked in the top ten in receptions (7th), yards (8th) and touchdowns (9th) that year.
Given a starting role with the Saints, "Hollywood", a nickname he picked up while with the Kansas City Chiefs for his particular style of dress and a name which carries to this day, quickly proved himself to be a premiere NFL receiver.
[citation needed]Beyond Katrina, to this day Joe donates time, energy and money to local charities in New Orleans and beyond.
[13] Always a spirited and outspoken player, Horn gained notoriety for a memorable touchdown celebration on ESPN Sunday Night Football against the New York Giants during the 2003 season.
15 years later, New Orleans Saints wide receiver Michael Thomas recreated Horn's famous celebration in a game against the Los Angeles Rams after scoring a 72-yard touchdown.
[17] In December 2011, Horn made headlines when he and a group of 11 other former professional players filed a lawsuit against the NFL.
[18] Prior to the 2014 season, Horn became a volunteer wide receivers coach for Northeast Mississippi Community College in Booneville, Mississippi[19] On December 12, 2019, federal prosecutors announced that Horn was one of 12 former NFL players charged with defrauding the league's retiree health care plan out of $3.4 million via phony claims for medical equipment.