Many Happy Returns Put Hester in Record Book

September 19, 2014 @ admin → No Comments

Yes, Devin Hester remains ridiculous. The former Chicago Bears star returned a punt 62 yards for a touchdown for the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night in a 56-14 victory vs. the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers. It was an NFL record-breaking 20th return TD. He had been tied with Deion Sanders for the record. What’s really ridiculous is no one came up with anything better to say about Hester other than he’s ridiculous. Oh, well.

A photo of Stephy C for Bears fans. Or for anyone.

* And for anyone lamenting Hester still could have been successful for the Bears if the team hadn’t let him go, the reality is they didn’t keep him. And they didn’t use him much. Other than to return kickoffs and punts. For the Falcons on Thursday, he also had a 20-yard touchdown run on an end-around and caught one pass for 25 yards. And this guy couldn’t get on the field on offense for the Bears.

* Speaking of ridiculous, after the game, Hester said he was unhappy his last 3-4 seasons with the Bears. So now some Bears fans are unhappy with Hester. And if this was some new Bear talking about his former team, those same fans would be applauding him.

* To say the penalty that Hester received for high-kicking his way into the end zone (as a tribute to Sanders) was absurd is an understatement. The NFL should be ashamed of itself. Then again, the league appears to have no shame, given its recent handling (more like mishandling or avoiding doing anything in cases of child abuse and domestic violence).

* The Lovie Smith-coached Bucs are 0-3. Quarterback Josh McCown was 5-for-12 for 58 yards with an interception. For those who say McCown’s performance is proof the Bears made a good decision by not re-signing him to back up Jay Cutler, please remember the Bucs are not a good team, while the Bears are going to the Super Bowl, right? As long as Cutler remains healthy, then the Bears made a wise choice. Otherwise? Not so much.

* Speaking of the Bears passing game, wide receiver Brandon Marshall spoke to the media at Halas Hall. As a non-eyewitness or ear-witness to the event, I cannot convey what he was talking about. Then again, neither can some of the folks who actually attended. It presumably had something to do with not rushing to judgment in cases of domestic violence.

* Speaking of not rushing to judgment, it would be unfair to say commissioner Roger Goodell always acts poorly involving players and domestic violence and child abuse. But only because Goodell doesn’t always act. At all. It won’t be long before his face appears on sides of milk cartons that wonder if anyone has seen this person. Maybe Goodell is in a bunker somewhere. Which would explain to a certain extent his bunker mentality.

* The Cubs scored four runs against the Dodgers right-hander Zach Greinke at Wrigley Field. Which conceivably is enough offense to win a game. And, considering the Cubs were using what looked a lot like a spring-training lineup, qualifies as something of an accomplishment. Rookie shortstop Javier Baez went 2-for-4 with a walk and only one strikeout. Rookie right fielder Jorge Soler went 2-for-4 with two runs batted in. OK, so Los Angeles rallied with five runs in the seventh inning to overcome a 4-1 deficit in an 8-4 victory. The Cubs are not so much interested in victories this season as they are creating the illusion of many victories next season.

* Reliever Neil Ramirez gave up five runs on five hits in 2/3 of an inning. On the bright (?) side for Ramirez fans, only one run was earned. so his earned-run average is 1.55 rather than anything worse. Small consolation. But it is a season (OK, several seasons) of small consolations in Cubdom.

* The Dodgers improved to 2-54 when trailing after six innings. Meaning the Cubs are almost in a class by themselves.

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