Devin Hester, You Were Ridiculous

devin-hester.22For the second time in as many off-seasons, the Bears have decided to cut ties with one of their all-time greats, announcing that they will not attempt to resign Devin Hester for the upcoming season.  Drafted in the second round of the 2006 draft, Hester quickly made an impact, returning a punt for a touchdown in his first game and recording six touchdowns over his first thirteen weeks.  As the Bears made their first Super Bowl appearance since their victory over the Patriots in Super Bowl XX, Hester returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown.

The following season, in an attempt to exploit his explosiveness, the Bears moved Hester from cornerback to wide receiver.  After returning both a punt and a kickoff for touchdowns in week 12 against the Broncos, Hester, in less than 2 seasons, became the leading kick returner in Bears history.

In 2011, Hester became the NFL’s all time leading punt returner after breaking Eric Metcalf’s record with a TD return against the Panthers.  Two years later, Hester returned a punt 81 yards for his 19th career return touchdown, tieing Deion Sanders for the NFL record.

Yesterday, Hester announced that, despite his desire to retire as a Bear, he would not be returning for a 9th season.  The Bears confirmed the news today, and they will once again head in to a season without one of their franchise stars.  Last season, their first without Brian Urlacher, the defense fell apart, causing them to once again miss the playoffs.  Hopefully they can do a better job in replacing Hester and his production.

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