Falcons put in a call for Joe Horn

By Darrell Laurant  |   Thursday, March 08, 2007  |  Comments( 3 )

Atlanta Falcons
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Joe Horn made a national name for himself (or, some might argue, a spectacle of himself) with his famous cell phone gag a few years ago. You remember -- the one where he retrieved the phone from behind a goalpost after scoring a touchdown for the New Orleans Saints and pretended to make a celebratory call?

Last week, he spent a lot of time on his phone with Arthur Blank, the owner of the Atlanta Falcons. And when all the mobile minutes and roaming charges were added up, Horn was on his way to Atlanta.

Horn is 35 years old, an age that for a wide receiver is like people in most professions turning 65. But there is still spring in his step and separation from defensive backs in his game, and maybe Blank got tired of hearing how Michael Vick didn't have anybody to throw to.

He's got Joe Horn now, one of the best receivers in the NFL just a couple of years ago. Last season, hampered by hamstring and groin injuries, he missed six games, including the last four. That gave rookie Marques Colston the opportunity to blossom, and pretty soon it was time for Horn to go.

If you look at the numbers, though, Horn's 18.65 yards per catch average was better than any of the Falcon receivers -- and Vick is known to throw the ball a lot farther than Drew Brees.

A sturdy 6-foot-1, 215-pounder, Horn comes from Elvis Presley country (Tupelo, Miss.), and is an NFL rarity for having gone straight to the pros out of Itawamba Junior College in Mississippi.

By all accounts, the Falcons also want him as a mentor to young receivers Michael Jenkins and Roddy White, both of whom came in highly touted but have underachieved. And if the passing game doesn't improve with Horn on the field and in the locker room and pass-happy Bobby Petrino as the coach, the blame will no doubt shift to the QB.

Horn can also thank Ashley Lelie, who left behind Horn's favorite number, 87, when the Falcons cut him.
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