Devin Hester finally a two-tiered touchdown threat

LAKE FOREST, Ill. — It took a couple of years, but Devin Hester and the Chicago Bears realized his increased role in the team's offense was a proposition of diminishing returns.

Taking fewer snaps as a wide receiver, Hester is back to his form as a game-changing return man, perhaps the best in NFL history. And with kickoff returner Danieal Manning, he helps give the Bears arguably the best return game in the league as they prepare to meet the Seattle Seahawks in Sunday's divisional playoff game at Soldier Field.

After going two seasons without a return for a touchdown, Hester has scored on three punt returns this year to break the NFL career record for most kicks returned for a TD with 14.

Not surprisingly, the Bears are No. 1 in the league in punt return average and No. 2 in kickoff return average. Hester leads the NFL with a 17.1-yard average on punts. Manning is 11th in kickoffs (among those with 30 or more returns) at 24.7 yards, including four of 40 or more yards.

"When we get a kickoff return or punt return, the whole bench gets up and watches. It's fun," special teams coordinator Dave Toub said.

The return game has been a critical part of the NFC North champions' success, consistently giving outstanding field position to an offense that struggled at times. The Bears are 30th in total yards gained, but 21st in scoring.

According to Elias Sports Bureau, they are second in the league in field position after kickoffs, with an average drive starting at the 31.5-yard line, and fourth after punts, at 30.1. Toub's statistics combining the two ranks them first overall.

Hester returned 13 kicks for a touchdown in his first two years in the league (2006-07). In addition to the seven punts and four kickoffs brought back, he returned the opening kickoff of Super Bowl XLI 92 yards for a TD, and in 2006 he returned a missed field goal 108 yards for a score.

With a need on offense, the Bears envisioned turning him into a prime receiving target in 2008, and he played extensively at the position over the next two years, catching 50-plus passes each season. But he had no kick returns for touchdowns. Last year, opponents even stopped kicking away from him.

Coming into this year, both Hester and the coaching staff decided less can be more.

"It's hard to focus on both and do great at both," Toub said. "I think history has proven that for a lot of guys.

"What we learned with Devin, and I think Devin learned, is you have to be focused on special teams. It can't be back-burner, 'I'll be good at it.' … He came to me (during training camp) and said, 'I'm going to get back.' And he did."

Hester acknowledges it took him a while to accept the difficulty in excelling at both roles.

"It's just never been done before, where a full-time receiver does kickoffs and punts," he said. "I thought I could be the first guy. Unfortunately, I'm not."

Hester's snaps with the offense have dropped as this season progressed.

According to ProFootballFocus.com, Hester has taken two-thirds of the snaps in the Bears' offense this year, about 8% fewer than last season. He appeared in about 90% of the plays the first four games this year, according to PFF. Since then, he has averaged about 60% of the snaps.

"At the end of the day, I think it's just having fresh legs back there (on returns)," said Hester, who has caught 40 passes for 475 yards and four TDs. "I won't be so fatigued."

About midseason, Hester volunteered to return kickoffs again as well, and he's handled a total of 12 kicks the final seven games for a 35.6 average.

"Just the passion that I miss, doing it all my life," he said. "It's another way to get my hands on the ball and try to make good plays."

Seattle had some success in its 23-20 victory in Chicago on Oct. 17. The Seahawks punted 10 times: Three went out of bounds, two were downed, and Hester was forced to make a fair catch on three and returned one for 4 yards. But on the final punt, with 1:54 to go in the game, Hester went 89 yards for a touchdown.

Manning also returned a kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown in the fourth quarter against the Seahawks, but the play was nullified by a holding penalty against the Bears.

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(usatoday.com)