Devin Hester is not a player you can place in any singular bucket. He’s one of the most unique players in NFL history.
Best remembered for his time with the Chicago Bears, let’s look back at why Hester is now entering the NFL Hall of Fame.
Devin Hester’s Stats and Career Accomplishments
Not every all-time NFL player was supposed to be one. Hester was taken in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft at No. 57 overall. Despite playing wide receiver in college at “The U” (Miami), Hester was drafted to play cornerback in the NFL. He didn’t even play defense in college until his sophomore year in 2004.
During his rookie season, Hester didn’t play a lick of offense. He saw just one target all season. Yet, he made the Pro Bowl and first-team All-pro.
How? From the moment he entered the league, Hester was the best return man in the NFL.
In 2006, Hester led the league in punt return yards. He also brought back three punts for touchdowns, as well as two kickoffs. His most famous kickoff return touchdown was the one to open Super Bowl XLI.
In 2007, Hester started playing more offense. For the next six seasons, all in Chicago, he was mostly a wide receiver…and, of course, the greatest return man to ever live.
Hester led the league in punt return touchdowns with a whopping four in 2007. He would again lead the league in that category in 2010.
Outside of 2008 and 2009, Hester never topped 500 receiving yards in a season. He made a total of three first-team All-Pros and one second-team All-Pro during his career. Every single one was either as a kick or punt returner.
Hester spent the first eight years of his career with the Bears. During his tenure, he returned a total of 13 punts and five kickoffs for touchdowns, striking fear into the hearts of every special teams coordinator.
There have only been a select few players in the NFL where teams tell their punters and kickers to not kick it to them — Hester is perhaps the most famous of them all.
After the 2013 season, Hester’s time in Chicago came to an end, and in 2014, he signed with the Atlanta Falcons.
In Atlanta, Hester played a fair amount of wide receiver after having played none the year prior. He had one of his better seasons, recording over 500 receiving yards for just the third time in his career.
Of course, Hester’s bread and butter remained his ability in the return game. Despite being 32 years old, he was still blazing fast. Hester only brought back one punt for a touchdown and no kickoffs, but he still led the league in total kick-return yards for the second consecutive year.
As we all know, though, Father Time is undefeated. By 2015, Hester was no longer the player he once was. Injuries reared their ugly head, limiting him to just five games.
Ahead of the 2016 season, Hester signed with the Baltimore Ravens. He spent 14 games with the team before he was released.
To close out the year, and ultimately, his career, Hester latched on with the Seattle Seahawks for their playoff run. In his final NFL game, he returned five kickoffs for a total of 194 yards in a loss to the eventual Super Bowl runner-up Atlanta Falcons.
Hester remained in the NFL throughout most of the 2017 season. After no team was willing to sign him, he retired in December at the age of 35.
Along with Bears all-time great, Matt Forte, Hester signed a one-day contract to officially retire as a Bear in April 2018. Hester currently holds the record for most special-teams return touchdowns with 20.
Hester’s Long Wait for the Hall of Fame
Hester was nominated to the Hall of Fame for both the 2022 and 2023 classes but was not inducted. However, 2024 was finally the year for Hester to receive his gold jacket.
“The last six months — I can’t really express all the buildup and the emotions,” Hester told reporters at a press conference during Hall of Fame week. “I would say it’s been from the moment that I fell in love with football at the age of 5 or 6 years old. The things that I had to go through and the process of getting to where we are today up here, speaking with you guys, it’s overwhelming.
Jacket off, Gold Jacket on! With the help of Hall of Famer @DeionSanders, Devin Hester puts on his @HaggarCo Gold Jacket!#PFHOF24 pic.twitter.com/iKjvcIUQ6O
— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) August 3, 2024
“As a kid, I can honestly say I didn’t envision being in the Hall of Fame. That wasn’t even a question or even a thought … now to be up here with you guys and speak on the Hall of Fame, it’s a great honor.”
Hester was one of three former Bears players enshrined in the Hall of Fame in 2024, joining 1985 Super Bowl champion Steve McMichael and nine-time Pro Bowl defensive end Julius Peppers.
Is Devin Hester the Best Kicker Returner of All Time?
This should go without saying — yes. Dakota Randall, NFL Analyst for Pro Football Network, named Randall the best NFL kick returner of all time.
Hester holds the NFL record for total return touchdowns with 19, finishing his career with 14 punt return touchdowns (most all-time) and five kickoff return TDs. He famously returned the opening kickoff in Super Bowl 41 for a touchdown, further cementing his legacy as the greatest returner in NFL history.
Behind Hester, Randall ranked Gayle Sayers second and Josh Cribbs third. He followed that with Dante Hall, Cordarrelle Patterson, and Desmond Howard.
There will never be another Devin Hester. 😮💨#PFHOF24 https://t.co/Ww1xiMNPc9 pic.twitter.com/I9NzwBc0Ef
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) August 3, 2024
It’s also interesting to look back to the 2006 NFL Draft when Hester was selected 57th overall out of Miami. Here’s what Greg Gabriel, former Bears college scouting director, said at the time: “He is going to scare other teams. He’s great with the ball in his hands. He’s very, very dangerous, real fast.”
What some may not know is that the Tennessee Titans were going to select Hester with the 45th pick — they told him as much. But they pivoted at the last minute and chose USC running back LenDale White.
“I called Devin and said, ‘Hi Devin, it’s Greg Gabriel with the Bears. We’re about to make you a Chicago Bear with our next pick,'” Gabriel told the official Chicago Bears website. “Devin goes, ‘For real?’ And I said, ‘Yeah, why wouldn’t it be for real?’ He said, ‘Tennessee called me. They said they were going to take me and then they didn’t do it.'”
Jerry Angelo, Bears general manager at the time, said about Hester’s versatility: “He vacillated back and forth and really never defined himself as either a receiver or a corner. He was a special-teams guy with a tremendous amount of talent that you felt like could grow into either position. But there was a learning curve and during that learning curve he’d be a good special-teams player. That was our methodology when we drafted him.”