By Jordan Long
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is every football player’s dream. They play the game to earn that right to be named as among the best ever. Devin Hester may get into the Hall of Fame for his return ability. He was one of the most dangerous return men in NFL history.
Hester played in the NFL from 2006 to 2016. Hester set the standard for kick and punt returns. Anytime he handled a football, Hester was able to make a large return to set up the Chicago Bears, Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, or Seattle Seahawks’ offense or it was a touchdown. Punters had to kick it out of bounds and kickers needed to make sure the ball went out of the endzone so he didn’t have a chance at a run back . Hester averaged 11.7 yards per punt return with 14 touchdowns. When it came to kickoff returns his average was 24.9 yards with 5 touchdowns.
Hester tried to be involved in the offense. He wasn’t a great receiver. He totaled 255 receiving yards for 3,311 yards and 16 touchdowns. Hester also rushed the football 36 times for 116 yards and 1 touchdown. He should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame for his punt and kick returns. Hester was the top returner in NFL history.
One player who believes he should be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame before Hester is Adam “Pacman” Jones. Jones was not just a returner, but he played cornerback as well. According to MSN.com, Jones said, “If you just go back and look at the history, who would be your top three, four returners from 2005 to 2017-18 season? You look at the average per yard, how many times I’ve touched the ball, with even being suspended, I had more yards than Devin Hester if you look at the amount of times we touched the ball.”
Jones played for the Cincinnati Bengals, Denver Broncos, Dallas Cowboys, and Tennessee Titans from 2005 to 2018. Diving into the numbers for returns, he averaged 10.1 yards per punt return, less than Hester. He scored 5 touchdowns, 9 less than Hester. When it comes to kick returns, his average is 25.9 yards which is 1 yard better than Hester. The difference is he never took one for a touchdown.
Jones probably won’t be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame for his special teams play. He didn’t do enough. Even his defensive stats aren’t Hall of Fame worthy. Jones ended up with 509 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 3 sacks, and 97 passes defended. He also had 17 interceptions with 2 touchdowns.
Jones can believe he is a Hall of Fame return man or should be placed in the Hall of Fame. Every player should feel that way. In reality, he isn’t. Jones most likely won’t even be considered because of his body of work. Hester on the other hand should receive more consideration and might be enshrined at some point. Hopefully, this argument is put to bed since there really isn’t a compelling case for Jones.
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