The Impact of Devin Hester

Bears return man Devin Hester impacted the game more than punter Ray Guy and the Pro Football Hall of Fame opened to him.

On Feb 4, 2007 my attention had been on the computer screen in front of me when I looked up from the press box just in time to see Indianapolis Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri sending the opening kickoff skyward.

A sea of flashing lights followed from the stands as Bears fans and Colts fans took photos of that historic opening kick in Super Bowl XLI. 

Expecting to see the ball kicked through the end zone for a touchback, a fleeting thought flashed through my mind to maybe watch a second longer just to make sure it really was what I expected and Tony Dungy ordered the ball kicked out of the end zone. Then I could resume editing a story written during pregame. 

That wasn't the case at all. Dungy had actually ordered Vinatieri to kick it to Devin Hester.

Dungy all week planned to have the kick sent out of the end zone. Dungy admitted later he expected to do this or have it squib-kicked, but before the game he changed his mind.

Hall or No Hall?

Fast forward 15 years. Until very recently, the idea of Devin Hester making the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year on his first attempt seemed unlikely.

It was easy for me to shrug off his accomplishments as a return man with the NFL record of 20 total regular-season TD returns, and see players like Reggie Wayne, Ronde Barber, Richard Seymour, Tony Boselli or Andre Johnson get voted in with the group of five who will earn a spot in Canton at Thursday night's announcement of the class.

I didn't just expect it. In fact, I argued in favor of this. Hester was a return man, not a regular player.

Time plays tricks on the mind and you forget what you once knew. 

Then came the playoff game between Green Bay and San Francisco three weeks ago, maybe the biggest win for Bears fans since their own team clinched a playoff berth in the 2020 season.

Special teams don't matter as much? The Packers wouldn't tell you this. Neither would the 49ers.

A blocked punt for the tying touchdown, a Robbie Gould 45-yard field goal off a snowy surface in overtime for the win, and Green Bay is done. Special teams matter. Jakeem Grant's 97-yard punt return against the Packers told us special teams matter.

Special teams have always been overlooked. So I never expected or even thought of Hester as a serious threat to make it to Canton on the first ballot, if at all.

This is a mistake I freely admit and regret. Hester deserves serious first-ballot consideration from electors for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

They've legislated much of the importance of special teams out of the game and even now there is talk about further limiting return possibilities because of safety concerns. However, the kicking game continues to play a huge role and what happened in Lambeau Field was the reminder we all needed.

It also was a reminder of what Hester did.

.@HoustonTexans new head coach Lovie Smith joins @gmfb to discuss the greatness of Devin Hester and what it would mean to see him make the Hall of Fame, and talks about his spectacular beard. pic.twitter.com/tqMkqYsE4t

— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) February 9, 2022

Electors Haven't Ignored Special Teams

Another big reason reason for thinking Hester didn't have a chance was the lack of regard voters have had for special teams in the past.

Sure, there are no pure return men or coverage men in Canton, although plenty of those voted in were key special teams players. Gale Sayers was possibly the most gifted return man of all time but did so much more to make it to the Hall besides returning it.

However, in 2014 voters paved the way for Hester to make it to Canton. They voted Ray Guy into the hall of fame. 

Guy was a Raiders punter, a great one, but he never scored a touchdown, field goal or safety. He did kick a PAT once. He could change games with field position. So, too, could Hester and besides that he scored 20 times to change games—actually 21 if you included what he did when all of those flashing lights went off in February, 2007—and he set up countless other scores with explosive returns. 

He also set up scores by scaring teams. The Broncos came to Soldier Field in 2007 and former Bear Todd Sauerbrun squib-kicked it out of fear of Hester's returns. Rashied Davis fielded it at the 35 and returned it 11 yards to the 46. The Broncos couldn't have giving up this kind of field position by not kicking to Hester, so later they kicked off deep to Hester. He returned it for a touchdown. 

There are kickers in Canton. Morten Andersen and Jan Stenerud are there solely for kicking a ball. They weren't about to tackle anyone. George Blanda and Lou Groza are in, as well, although both played other positions besides kicker at the time of a far less specialized game.

A social media war of sorts was waged by Bills fans because Steve Tasker hasn't been voted into Canton. There was another one by Eagles fans who argue Hester isn't the best returner of all time because Brian Mitchell had 19,013 yards in returns and 13 touchdowns.

He had seven less than Hester. It's not even close. And Hester did it on 610 combined kick and punt returns to Mitchell's 1,070.

The curious Hall of Fame case of Devin Hester, who dominated his position like no one else... and who doesn't really fit in today's game.

As HOF voters weigh a new class, Hester—and tons of his peers—thinks he should be a first-ballot inductee: https://t.co/eWtiIwMd9G pic.twitter.com/PIgh0g8Ilp

— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) February 8, 2022

Like Mitchell, Hester had many accolades for his returns in the past with four Pro Bowl appearances and three All-Pro nominations. He led the league in punt return yardage twice and kick return yards twice. His three punt return TDs in 2006 and 2010 and four in 2007 led the NFL those seasons. He either led or tied for the lead in kick return TDs twice and in kick returns and yardage twice.

The Coup De Grace

Then there is the matter of all those flashing bulbs as Vinatieri approached the football.

On the biggest stage, on the biggest day of the year for football, in the moment when everyone interested in sports in the U.S. and many around the world were watching, Hester delivered the thrilling play everyone anticipated during a two-week buildup. He let no one down.

Hester worked back to the middle after catching it to his left side at the 8-yard line, juked a little, made two sharper cuts to the center of the field and then across it to the right side as one Colts player after another fell behind.

Mike Giordano almost caught Hester from behind as he slowed thinking the end zone was his. Hester tripped up a bit when it was too late to stop the touchdown. He had done the unthinkable.

Fifteen years later I'm really glad I looked up just in time not to see Vinatieri kicking the ball out of the end zone as I'd assumed, but right to Hester's arms.

Hopefully the electors will be just as fortunate when they have the chance to make history as I was at witnessing it rather than look at my computer screen.

Of course special teams are important and Hester proved it for 11 seasons.

And of course a return man should be in Canton. 

Of course the return man who should be there is Devin Hester.

HAVE FUTURE DEVIN HESTERS BEEN WRITTEN OUT OF THE GAME?

Twitter: BearDigest@BearsOnMaven