CANTON, Ohio — There was a hint of vindication in Bears legend Devin Hester’s speech at his Hall of Fame enshrinement Saturday, but mostly he used his time on stage to tell the audience how much he loved his family.
It was the certification of a one-of-a-kind player, the first return specialist ever to make the Hall, as well as a celebration of Hester’s remarkable journey from a challenging childhood to become a husband and father who reached the pinnacle of his sport.
Wearing a black shirt with a gold goat chain under his Hall of Fame jacket, Hester held back tears repeatedly. His mother, Juanita Brown, introduced him, and he gave a touching tribute to his stepfather, Derrick Brown, for raising Hester “as one of his own.” He also thought of his father, Lenorris, who died when he was 11.
“He would always give me words of encouragement,” Hester said. “He always taught me to be a great father, great husband and to become someone special in life. I hope you’re proud of the man that I’ve become today, Dad.”
How could he not be?
Hester’s groundbreaking career remains unmatched. He scored an NFL-record 20 regular-season touchdowns on special teams and ran back the opening kickoff of Super Bowl XLI for a touchdown.
All but one of those touchdowns came during his run with the Bears from 2006 through ’13 before finishing his career with the Falcons, Ravens and Seahawks. He thanked the Bears, singling out former area scout Mark Sadowski for lobbying for him, for drafting him in the second round out of the University of Miami.
“You didn’t know what you were getting yourself into,” he told the Bears, “but you believed you had something special coming your way.”
The team sent a delegation that included chairman George McCaskey and president Kevin Warren. A spokesperson for the Hall of Fame said none of the Bears’ Hall of Famers were expected at the ceremony because they were in Homer Glen with Steve McMichael.
Iconic coach Mike Ditka also wasn’t there since he is unable to travel from his home in Naples, Fla., due to health concerns.
Hester shouted out many former teammates, coaches and staff, especially, “the great Coach Lovie Smith” and “the best special teams coach in the world,” Dave Toeb. When he mentioned Smith and he was shown on the videoboards, the crowd started a “Lovie” chant.
“Thank you for believing in me,” he told Smith. “I hope we made every critic bite their tongue.”
Hester also mentioned former receivers coach Daryl Drake, a relentless ally who died in 2019, for “opening doors for me” and longtime Bears equipment manager Tony Medlin for “all the long conversations we had in your office about how to be a professional athlete.”
Those lessons landed with Hester, now 41, evidenced by his stature as an all-time great and his devotion to his family. He highlighted his wife Zingha and three sons, Devin Jr., Drayton and Denali, crediting each of them for specific aspects of their character.
Even while discussing his career, Hester repeatedly turned to topics bigger than himself.
“I hope me being here today opens up the doors to bring some attention to other guys, like Brian Mitchell and Josh Cribbs,” he said. “I’m not the only returner who deserves to be in the Hall of Fame. I’m just the first.”
He also drew meaning from the difficulty of constantly having doors closed on him to play running back and wide receiver until he finally fully bought into being an elite return man.
“Sometimes we get stuck in our own way,” Hester said. “But you have to leave your options open because God’s plan might be better than yours.
“I embraced God’s plan for me and — mostly — I accepted my calling. By me embracing it, it made me the best returner to ever walk the face of the earth.”
