Bears WR Hester injures shoulder
11/21/2008
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CHICAGO (Ticker) - Devin Hester's days as the Chicago Bears kick
returner may be nearing an end. The Chicago Tribune reported Friday that Danieal Manning is
likely to be the Bears' top return man when the club visits the
St. Louis Rams on Sunday. Hester has been one of the league's most dynamic return men in
recent years, but the two-time Pro Bowler has yet to run back a
kick or punt for a score this season. "Devin has set the bar so high that people expect every time he
touches the ball, he needs to score ... every time," Manning
told the Tribune. "Sometimes I expect him to score, and I'm his
teammate. "If he's tired or down or anything like that, I'm the next guy
in line. And I'm just trying to do my job. I try not to let my
team miss a beat." Manning replaced Hester in the fourth quarter of Sunday's
embarrassing 37-3 loss to Green Bay and provided a spark,
netting 82 yards on three kickoff returns. He has remained in that role this week at practice, though
Hester still is expected to get the bulk of the work on punt
returns. "They're not asking me to return and score every time I touch
the ball," said Manning, whose best return against the Packers
went for 30 yards. "It's all about field position, ball
security. And that's what I do." Hester, who has five career kickoff returns for touchdowns -
including a memorable run back in Super Bowl XLI - has taken on
additional responsibilities this season as the Bears attempt to
develop him into a top receiving threat. Rewarded with a four-year, $40 million contract extension during
the offseason, Hester has 26 receptions for 318 yards and two
touchdowns. "When you have a guy like (Manning) sitting on the bench, you
have to use him," special teams coordinator Dave Toub said. "It
gives Devin a chance to maybe recover. He's playing a lot of
offense. He's doing the punt returns. It's a luxury to have
someone else to go to."
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