Cincinnati Bengals Horton was selected by the
Cincinnati Bengals in the second round (53rd overall) of the
1983 NFL draft. He also was selected by the
Los Angeles Express in the third round (25th overall) of the
1983 USFL draft. Horton decided to sign with the Bengals. He earned the job as a starting
cornerback with Cincinnati by the second game of the season (5 starts), finishing with a franchise rookie record 5 interceptions, including one returned for a
touchdown. The next year, Horton was named the regular starter at
right cornerback after the retirement of
Ken Riley, posting 66 tackles and 3 interceptions, including one returned for a
touchdown. In
1986, he was passed on the depth chart by rookie
Lewis Billups and was moved to the
nickelback role, making 55 tackles and one interception as the
Bengals barely missed the playoffs despite finishing 10-6. In 1987, Horton started 8 games, while replacing an injured
Louis Breeden, tallying 53 tackles. In
1988, he was moved to safety and played mainly nickelback. He recorded 26 tackles, 3 interceptions and one sack as the Bengals won their second AFC Championship. In
Super Bowl XXIII, after being up 13–6 over the
San Francisco 49ers at the beginning of the fourth quarter, driving from the Bengals 10-yard line, quarterback
Joe Montana threw a pass towards Billups that he dropped in the
end zone. On the next play, the 49ers scored a
touchdown, tying the game at 13. Towards the game's conclusion, Montana threw a 10-yard
touchdown pass to
John Taylor who was being covered by Horton, for a 20–16 lead with 34 seconds left and the eventual championship. He also was the team's punt returner during the game.
Dallas Cowboys On March 14,
1989, the
Dallas Cowboys signed Horton as a
Plan B free agent with the intention of playing him at
safety. He was named the starting
free safety, helping anchor the secondary and calling the defensive signals. He collected 116 tackles (second on the team), 8 passes defensed (second on the team), 2 forced fumbles (led the team), one interception and one sack. In
1990, he sprained his left knee in the fourth game against the
New York Giants, that forced him to miss one contest and slowed him the rest of the season. He posted 69 tackles, 6 passes defensed, one interception and 4 fumble recoveries. In
1991, he finished third on the team in tackles (105), recorded 8 passes defensed, one interception and scored in back-to-back games: a fumble return in a 21-16 win against the
New York Giants and a 65-yard interception return in a 20–17 win over the
Green Bay Packers. He became the first player in franchise history to score a defensive touchdown in back-to-back games and the third player (
Jim Ridlon, 1964 and
Larry Cole, 1968) ever to have 2 defensive touchdowns in the same season. In
1992, he started the first 7 games before tearing his right
ACL (he chose not to have surgery) and missing 4 games. He was replaced with
James Washington who took over the starting job. He still was able to be part of the championship team in
Super Bowl XXVII. Horton was released on June 1,
1993, with the Cowboys looking to give more opportunities to Washington and
Darren Woodson. He finished his career with 19 interceptions, 11 fumble recoveries, 3 sacks and 5 defensive touchdowns. ==Coaching career==