Chicago Bears draft: Top picks in franchise history

Devin Hester, PR/KR, 2006 2nd Round (#57 overall)

When the Chicago Bears drafted Hester, there were a lot of confused people. Hester was playing cornerback for the University of Miami, but he was nothing special. Perhaps the Bears wanted to use his speed on special teams, but to spend a second round pick on that? It was crazy.

What ended up being crazy was Hester’s career. He is entering his eleventh season, and he has a record nineteen return touchdowns, surpassing the incredible Deion Sanders.

Hester burst onto the NFL scene right from the beginning. In his rookie season, he led the NFL in both punt return touchdowns and kickoff return touchdowns. He would lead the league in punt return touchdowns three times and kickoff return touchdowns twice in his career.

Hester was a threat to score every time a ball was kicked to him. Even when a punter tried to kick away from him, Hester would find a way to get a big return or a touchdown return.

Hester would also make an impact in the Super Bowl in his rookie season. He became the only player in Super Bowl history to take the opening kickoff for a touchdown. The game was played in his hometown of Miami, and he gave the home crowd a reason to cheer.

After Hester retires, he should be waiting for that call from Canton. Special teams players have a very hard time making it to the Hall of Fame (ask Ray Guy). Hester should not, however. He was truly the best at his position, and the voters would be crazy not to give him the honor he so deserves.

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