Chicago Bears Are Making a Mistake with Devin Hester

The Chicago Bears turned up a gem when they selected defensive back Devin Hester from the University of Miami in the second round of the 2006 draft. They were criticized in many circles for wasting such a high draft choice on a return specialist when the team needed help in other areas. Then Hester stepped onto the field and turned the league on its ear. As a rookie, Hester set an NFL record for kicks returned for touchdowns with five on his way to a Pro Bowl selection. The next year, Hester was just as amazing, breaking his own league record with six returns for touchdowns.

Then, inexplicably, the Bears decided to convert him to a wide receiver. Since that time, Hester has shown flashes of brilliance, but mostly mediocrity. He also has not returned a punt or kickoff for a touchdown since then.

What were the Bears coaches thinking? They had someone who in two seasons established himself as the best player of all time at returning kicks. In addition to his 11 regular season scores, Hester also added a then-record-tying 108-yard scoring return on a missed field goal and became the first man in NFL history to return the opening kick of the Super Bowl back for a touchdown. Even if Hester never returns another kick for a touchdown, his two-year dominance firmly plant him among the greatest returners the sport has ever seen. It is without a doubt the most dazzling two-year display in the league's nearly 90 years of play.

In fact, with two more return touchdowns, Hester will tie Brian Mitchell, the NFL's all-time leader, who needed 13 seasons to accomplish the feat.

It makes sense that the Bears were lured to make the switch to get the ball into Hester's hands more often. But it also reeks of greed, when they should have been happy with what they had, the league's best punt and kick returner. And now after a full season as a receiver, with no return touchdowns, it looks like the Bears are inching closer to ruining what could have been one of the most spectacular careers in history.

The Bears, of course, remain convinced that Hester will emerge as a dominant receiver, so much so that they declined to bring in any of the free agent wideouts that remain available. Hester certainly has the blazing speed to play the position and has decent hands. He lacks the size of many of today's top flight wide receivers, though, and his route running ability has been questioned in the past. Few league experts outside the Bears organization believe Hester will become the team's go-to receiver and establish himself among the league's elite.

The Bears aren't flinching in the face of the criticism their wide receiving corps has received from across the league and even from some of their own fans.

"I'm not sure how anyone who has seen Devin Hester's speed, explosiveness, and game-breaking ability can conclude that he doesn't have what it takes to be a No. 1 receiver," Chicago Bears senior writer Larry Mayer said in a recent post on the team's Website. "To me, the only thing that Hester lacks at the position is experience. With another year in the system and the arrival of Jay Cutler, I think Hester will have a tremendous 2009 season as a receiver. I've heard some people suggest that the Bears should use him exclusively as a return specialist. While he had unprecedented success in that role in 2006-07, there's no guarantee that he would replicate those superhuman achievements."

Mayer is correct that there are no guarantees that Hester could duplicate his unprecedented early success. But by playing wide receiver the entire time, it definitely diminishes his return abilities. Maintaining the game-breaker as a full-time return man would ensure he has fresh legs and a singular focus every time he steps on the field. Hester's amazing performances amounted to more than just the touchdowns he scored. He was a game changer, giving the Bears good field position and forcing teams to game plan for a returner like they never have had to in the past.

But now, he will return punts only. His kickoff return duties already have been handed over to Danieal Manning, who actually led the league in yards per return in 2008. Unless Hester suprises a lot of folks and emerges into the top-flight receiver Bears coaches believe he can be, Bears fans will always be left to wonder what could have been and opposing teams will be breathing a bit easier when kicking or punting the ball.