Bear Digest

Devin Hester's NFL Hit List: Records and TDs

All of Devin Hester's touchdown returns, who his favorite victims were and all of the NFL records he holds.

Gene Chamberlain

In this story:

The Touchdown Returns

1. Sept. 10, 2006: An 84-yard punt return touchdown to lock up a 26-0 victory over the Packers at Lambeau Field.

2. Oct. 16, 2006: An 83-yard punt return TD at Arizona puts the Bears ahead in the famed "They are who we thought they were" game, a 24-23 Bears comeback win over the Cardinals.

3. Nov. 12, 2006: 108-yard missed field goal return in New Jersey to help the Bears win 38-20 over the Giants. Hester made the Giants think he wasn't returning it, then did behind a wall of blockers.

4. Dec. 3, 2006: Against the Minnesota Vikings at Soldier Field, a 45-yard return of Chris Kluwe's punt for a TD after he nearly broke one earlier in the 23-13 Bears win.

5. Dec. 11, 2006: A 94-yard kickoff return in St. Louis at the Edward Jones Dome for a touchdown 13 seconds after the Rams went ahead 6-0 on a Torry Holt TD catch. And he wasn't done.

 6. Dec. 11, 2006: His work wasn't done. A 96-yard kickoff return for a TD to lock up a 42-27 victory over the Rams.

7. Feb. 4, 2007, Super Bowl XLI: At Miami, Hester becomes the first player to return the opening kickoff of the Super Bowl for a TD, a 92-yarder in a 29-17 rain-soaked Bears loss to the Colts. His most famous return doesn't count on his official total since it was postseason.

8. Sept. 16, 2007: A 73-yard punt return TD put the Bears up 14-0 in a 20-10 victory over the Chiefs.

9. Sept. 30, 2007: A 97-yard kick return for a TD but it wasn't enough in a 37-27 loss at Ford Field.

10. Oct. 14, 2007: Hester starts the scoring with an 89-yard return of a Kluwe punt in a wild 34-31 loss at Soldier Field to Minnesota.

11. Nov. 25, 2007: Former Bears punter Todd Sauerbrun can't tackle Hester as he takes it back 75 yards for a TD in a 37-34 overtime victory, but he wasn't done.

12. Nov. 25, 2007: Hester ties the game in a 37-34 overtime victory at Soldier Field and this time it's on an 88-yard kick return. Once again he races past Sauerbrun, who kicks off besides punting—he just doesn't tackle.

13. Dec. 30, 2007: Hester returns a punt 64 yards for a TD against the Saints untouched in a season-ending 33-25 win at home over the team the Bears beat for the NFC title the previous year.

14. Sept. 27, 2010: Hester went two seasons without a TD return but broke out in a night game with a 62-yarder against the team he made his first return against, and the Bears won over the Packers 20-17. They couldn't beat the same team on the same field later in the year for the NFC championship after Jay Cutler's knee injury.

15. Oct. 17 2010: An 89-yard punt return at home against the Seahawks but it can't rescue the Bears in a 23-20 loss. They would later go on to pay back the Seahawks in the playoffs.

16. Dec. 20, 2010: Once again Hester hits the Vikings and Kluwe with a punt return TD, this from 64 yards, and it gave him the record for most return touchdowns on kicks/punts in NFL history. It capped off a division title-clinching 40-14 win at the frozen U of M stadium.

17. Oct. 2, 2011: His 69-yard punt return for a TD put the Bears up 24-10 and they hung on for a 34-29 win at Soldier Field over the Carolina Panthers. The return broke the NFL all-tome record for punt return TDs.

18. Oct. 16, 2011: At least he changed it up for the Vikings by taking a kickoff back 98 yards for a TD instead of another Kluwe punt. This one helped the Bears rout Minnesota 39-10 at Soldier Field.

19. Nov. 13, 2011: The Lions tried punting away from him but didn't once and he made them pay with an 82-yard TD return in a 37-13 win at Soldier Field.

20. Oct. 20, 2013: Hester brought it back 81 yards in a wild 45-41 loss to Washington that later came back to haunt the Bears in the playoff chase. It was his final Bears return, as well.

21. Sept. 18 2014: For Atlanta in a game at the Georgia Dome, Hester brought back a punt 62 yards for a TD and broke a tie with Deion Sanders for most regular-season returns for TDs of all kinds. Sanders had been a mentor and good friend of Hester's. It was Hester's final TD return and he led Atlanta to a 56-14 victory over Tampa Bay.

 The NFL Records

Most special teams touchdowns in a career: 20 (14 punts, 5 kickoffs, 1 missed field goal).

Most non-offensive TDs in a career: 20.

Most kickoff and punt return TDs: 19.

Most punt return TDs: 14.

Most punt return TDs in a season: 4 (2007).

Most kickoff return TDs for a game: 2 TIED (Bears at St. Louis Rams, Dec. 11, 2006)

Most combined return TDs in a season: 6 (2007, 2 kickoffs, 4 punts).

Most rookie combined return TDs in a season: 5 (2006, 3 punt, 2 kickoffs).

Most combined return touchdowns in a game: 2 Bears at St. Louis Rams, Dec. 11, 2006 (2 kickoffs, Denver Broncos at Bears, Nov. 25, 2007 (1 punt, 1 kickoff)

Most non-offensive touchdowns in a season: 6, twice, 2006: 3 punts, 2 kickoffs, 1 missed field goal. 2007: 4 punts 2 kickoffs

Fastest touchdown in Super Bowl history: 14 seconds.

First Super Bowl opening kick returned for a TD: Super Bowl XLI, 92 yards vs. Indianapolis.

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Published
Gene Chamberlain
GENE CHAMBERLAIN

BearDigest.com publisher Gene Chamberlain has covered the Chicago Bears full time as a beat writer since 1994 and prior to this on a part-time basis for 10 years. He covered the Bears as a beat writer for Suburban Chicago Newspapers, the Daily Southtown, Copley News Service and has been a contributor for the Daily Herald, the Associated Press, Bear Report, CBS Sports.com and The Sporting News. He also has worked a prep sports writer for Tribune Newspapers and Sun-Times newspapers.

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