Post by Deleted on May 5, 2018 13:55:51 GMT -6
Thomas Jones says Devin Hester belongs in the Hall of Fame
Thomas Jones firmly believes Devin Hester belongs in the Hall of Fame.
Matt Eurich - 3 hours ago
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(Photo: Jonathan Daniel, Getty)
For a player like Devin Hester, it seems fairly obvious that he belongs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was one of the most dynamic players of his era, was the epitome of a game-changer and went on to be one of the reasons why there were rule changes in the NFL in terms of the return game. Last December he announced his retirement from the NFL and back in April he signed a one-day contract to officially retire as a member of the Bears alongside fellow former second-round pick Matt Forte. Hester has never been shy about his desire to go into the Hall of Fame and now has support from one of his former teammates.
Thomas Jones spent a total of three seasons with the Bears and those final two seasons were with Hester in 2005 and 2006. On the Laurence Holmes Show on 670 The Score in Chicago, Jones compared watching Hester to watching a video game and had a simple message for those who are going to eventually vote on Hester's chances in a few years.
"He's just a very special player," Jones told Holmes, via 670TheScore.com. "Like very rare, first-ballot Hall of Famer, hands down."
The numbers for Hester squarely speak for themselves. In total he returned 14 punts for touchdowns and five kickoffs for touchdowns. In addition to those 19 returns he also returned one missed field goal for a touchdown and became the first player to return the opening kickoff of the Super Bowl for a touchdown. He ended his career with four Pro Bowl nods and was a three-time First-team All-Pro as a return man. No player in NFL history has as many punt returns for touchdowns and his 20 total returns are the most in NFL history.
Getting into the Hall of Fame purely as a specialist is not an easy thing to do. Ray Guy is considered to be the greatest punter to ever play the game but it took until 2014 for him to enter the Hall of Fame after retiring following the 1986 season. He became just the second punter in the Hall of Fame and the first pure punter to go into the Hall. In total only five special teamers are currently in the Hall of Fame: Guy, Jan Stenerud, George Blanda, Lou Groza and Morten Anderson.
Of that group above, Blanda and Groza were not pure special teamers with Blanda having played quarterback and Groza having played tackle.
The odds at this point are against Hester going into the Hall of Fame anytime soon, but there is no denying the impact he had on the game. On top of of his numerous returns for touchdowns, Hester also changed the game with the NFL instilling the "Hester Rule" on kickoffs. The NFL changed the kickoff to the 25-yard line to help promote more touchbacks, ultimately limiting Hester's ability to take over games as a return man.
It may be difficult for Hester to get into the Hall of Fame during the early stages, but the more people like Jones vouch for him the greater his chances will be of getting in sooner rather than later.
Author/Matt Eurich @matteurich