Hester needs help

Based on their inactivity in the free agent market, it’s obvious the Bears are counting on Devin Hester to be their go-to wide receiver. But they’re impeding his progress by not acquiring another threat to distract defenses that will realize what most of us already know: there are no other reliable weapons among the Bears’ wide receivers.

Last year, the combined total of the five other wide receivers currently on the Bears’ roster – John Broussard, Devin Aromashodu, Rashied Davis, Brandon Rideau and Earl Bennett -- was 35 catches and 445 yards, all by Davis.

That deficiency must be addressed in the draft – and early. The good news is that the Bears now have four picks in the first 99 selections, including the late-third-round compensatory pick they were awarded Monday. The Bears were also given a pair of compensatory picks in the seventh round.

Those compensatory picks were the Bears’ reward for losing Bernard Berrian, Brendon Ayanbadejo and John Gilmore last year in free agency, while not signing any free agents. The Bears now own the 18th, 49th, 84th, and 99th picks, in addition to one pick in the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds, plus the two compensatory picks in the seventh.

During last week’s minicamp, Hester said: “It’s important for me to play like a No. 1 receiver. That’s my biggest goal. I feel like I have the ability to play as a No. 1 receiver, and I’m feeling real good and confident.”

But, if the Bears don’t provide Hester with a legitimate threat to prevent constant double teams, he’ll struggle to realize that ability, no matter how much natural talent he has.

(dailyherald.com)