Devin Hester, the most prolific return man in NFL history, will finally be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He is one of three former Chicago Bears who will be bestowed the NFL’s highest honor, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Joining Hester will be Steve “Mongo” McMichael, one of the central protagonists of that hallowed Super Bowl-winning 1985 Bears team, and Julius Peppers, the marauding pass rusher initially drafted by the Carolina Panthers who played four years in Chicago.
It means that the Pro Football Hall of Fame Induction ceremony in August will be a Bears sort of affair, which is welcome news for so many who root for the Monsters of the Midway.
I ask following the announcement later tonight that Bear fans take a 24 hour break from Caleb/Justin, Coach Flus/Others debates and instead Celebrate the newest members of the Pro Football Hall of Fame representing the Chicago Bears.
— Ryan Poles (@RyanPolesBears) February 8, 2024
McMichael’s pending enshrinement is particularly sweet due to his ongoing battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or ALS, the debilitating condition that attacks the nervous system and takes away a person’s ability to function physically. At this point, McMichael, who can no longer move on his own, requires around-the-clock care.
When he was named as an HOF semifinalist earlier this year, and his induction was less certain, McMichael suffered a health setback and was admitted to the ICU.
“He needs to see himself enshrined in the Hall of Fame,” his wife Misty said in a statement when he was hospitalized. “Please pray for him to get through this.”
Misty recently told CBS Chicago that if her husband did get nominated, she would do everything she could to get him to Canton in August, including chartering a medical airplane and wheeling her husband onstage herself.
Hester’s road to Canton wasn’t a guarantee either.
Despite being the most prolific and electrifying returner in NFL history, he was denied induction into the Hall of Fame on two previous occasions. Hester holds the NFL record with 20 return touchdowns, which includes punts, kickoffs, missed field goals, fumbles and interceptions.
Drafted out of the University of Miami as a cornerback in the second round, Hester made an immediate impact for the Bears in 2006 while donning No. 23, a jersey number that means a lot around Chicago.
He blazed the NFL in his rookie season, leading the league in punt return yards and scoring three punt return touchdowns. Hester also tacked on two kick return touchdowns that year. But he saved one of his most memorable plays for the Super Bowl, leading off the big game with a breathtaking kickoff return for a touchdown.
17 years ago today, Devin Hester started Super Bowl XLI with a BANG. 😤 pic.twitter.com/STGjcVZ3mh
— NFL (@NFL) February 4, 2024
So why was the greatest returner ever to don NFL cleats denied twice? He primarily played on special teams, which is seen as less vital than, say, playing wide receiver on offense or cornerback on defense.
Still, few players who have ever been in this league have impacted the game quite like Hester.
As for Peppers, his enshrinement into the Hall of Fame was virtually a lock when he retired in 2019 after a 17-year career. Peppers has the fourth most sacks in the NFL since 1982, trailing only Bruce Smith, Reggie White and Kevin Greene. When Peppers joined the Bears in the 2010 season, he enjoyed some true renaissance years in his early thirties when most players regress. He had 11 and 11.5 sacks in 2011 and 2012, respectively, and was named a Pro-Bowler in three out of his four years in Chicago.
But when the Bears released Peppers, he signed a three-year deal with the rival Packers, an unforgivable offense in the eyes of Bears fans. Indeed, Peppers would have more productive years with Green Bay, but it didn’t quite live up to what he produced with Chicago and earlier in his career with Carolina.
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