Hall of Fame 2024: Devin Hester made highlights and history as an elite kick returner

Seven men will be formally inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on August 3 in Canton, Ohio. Yahoo Sports will take a relatively brief look at each legend and how they achieved football immortality.

When you think of Super Bowl XLI between the Chicago Bears and Indianapolis Colts, what’s the first play you remember? Colts fans, stay out of this one.

For most football fans, it was Devin Hester’s kickoff return touchdown on the first play of the game. That may be the only time the most memorable moment in a Super Bowl came from the losing team.

Part of the reason the return became an enduring part of NFL history, regardless of the Bears’ eventual loss, is that it came from perhaps the greatest returner ever. Hester is the first player who was primarily a kick returner to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

That Super Bowl return is a great summary of what made Hester so great. He started running laterally, scanning the field, and after a few quick jukes, the Colts defenders were left grabbing for a ghost, he was in the open field. After that, it was mostly a turnaround. Hester slid past the Colts for a 92-yard touchdown. Then Hester unhooked his helmet and began a provocative walk through the end zone.

There have been many great returners in NFL history, but it’s fitting that Hester made history when he was elected to the Hall of Fame.

Devin Hester dominated the games as a returner

Before a 2007 game between the Bears and Denver Broncos, the Broncos had the same conversation that many teams had before encountering Hester. Should they kick to him?

Broncos punter Todd Sauerbrun made it clear. They kicked to Hester.

“We’re not going to play a coward’s ball,” Sauerbrun said a few days before the game. “We’re not going to kick him away. Hey, we have a ton of respect for him and he’s the best, but we have guys on our coverage teams who are paid to make big tackles.”

Denver led at halftime. Then Hester had a punt return 75 yards for a touchdown and an 88-yard kickoff return for another touchdown. The Bears won 37-34 in overtime.

If you weren’t afraid of Hester, you should have been. Hester holds the NFL record with 20 return touchdowns. He also holds the record for most punt return touchdowns with 14. Hester had five return touchdowns in his rookie season in 2006, and topped that with six in his sophomore season. That’s the NFL record for a single season.

It could have been worse if teams hadn’t gotten smarter and kicked Hester away.

Hester is a unique Hall of Famer

During Hester’s college career at Miami, he played some offense and defense and was of course a dangerous returner. Hester started his NFL career as a cornerback, switched to receiver, and never really made a big impact at either (although he did have 17 career touchdowns from scrimmage and 757 receiving yards in 2009). It didn’t really matter, considering how good Hester was at returns.

Hester had eight exciting seasons with the Bears before spending three seasons with the Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens and Seattle Seahawks to finish his career. In Hester’s final NFL game, a Seahawks playoff game against the Falcons at the end of the 2016 season, he averaged 38.8 yards on five kickoff returns. He was 34 years old.

Although Hester is widely regarded as the greatest returner of all time, it wasn’t a given that he would make it into the Hall of Fame. He was a finalist in 2022 and 2023, but didn’t make the cut. Hester did receive plenty of votes this year, a great tribute to one of the most unique and exciting players in NFL history.

“When you think about it, any position to be the first one in the Hall of Fame is so unbelievable and surreal,” Hester told Yahoo Sports after it was announced he would be part of the 2024 Hall of Fame class. “I’m blessed to be able to open doors for the rest of the guys that are knocking on the door and deserve to be in the Hall of Fame.”