Finally!!! Bowen Suggests the Obvious for Increasing Hester's Productivity.

Bears want more from Hester? Then align him in the slot

Chicago could possibly reduce WR's workload on special teams. Matt Bowen

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Print This April 10, 2012, 11:40 AM EST





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As the Chicago Tribune’s Vaughn McClure wrote today, the Bears could be looking to give WR Devin Hester a larger role in the offensive game plan. And that would mean limiting his duties as a kick returner (a possibility for Chicago with FA pickups Devin Thomas and Eric Weems).


http://cdn.cloudfiles.mosso.com/c191...ter11-8676.jpgICON Because of his skill set, Devin Hester is an ideal fit to play inside of the numbers.


I get it. Hester would still be the primary return man in the punt game, but when you add special teams talent in Thomas and Weems (on top of the lack of returns with the ball being kicked from the 35-yard line), the Bears can reduce his workload on kickoffs.


Sounds good and looks good in early April. Get Hester more involved in the offense.

However, from my perspective, if you want to see Hester produce in the passing game, then let him run the short to intermediate route tree inside of the numbers.


Here’s what you will see from Hester in a practice setting (or during individual period in camp): speed off the release, a burst out of his cuts and dynamic lateral ability in one-on-one sessions. He looks the part of a player you don’t want to match up with in the open field.


But that hasn’t translated to true production when he is aligned outside of the numbers. CBs can get their hands on Hester, ride him into the boundary and force him to widen his release. An occasional deep ball (think fade or post), but not enough to make opposing defensive coordinators worry when they turn on the tape.


Fix that. That should be the goal of new offensive coordinator Mike Tice. Move Hester in his pre-snap alignment, use motion, bunch or stack looks and target him inside of the numbers—where he can use that lateral movement to win matchups.


Talk to any DB in the NFL and they will tell you that playing the nickel (or dime) role in sub packages is tough. It allows the WR a “two-way go” (inside or outside release) and the ability to play off your leverage on a basic option route.


GM Phil Emery made the right call to go get Brandon Marshall from Miami and the Bears might not be done adding talent at the WR position depending on the prospects they target in the upcoming draft.


Will Hester fit with Marshall? Of course, and he should see more on-on-one matchups because of it. But the real prodcution will come if the Bears utilize his skill set in the middle of the field.


Follow me on Twitter: @MattBowen41

I could not agree more. I did see him motioning a lot last year but nothing really came from it. :goodpost:

How many times has this been suggested by nearly every member of this forum. If Tice finally sees the light of day and moves him are we all due a consulting fee? Can we truly claim that we have more football smarts than the average Monday AM "Armchair QB's"?

This has been SOOOOOOO very obvious for SOOOOOOO very long that it's ridiculous that it hasn't been done yet. Some may disagree with me on this but trying to make Hester into a legit #1 WR is another legacy from the Angelo era. Giving him a $40 mil contract (much of which he won't earn) demanded we do something with besides just accept that he was a superhuman return man but a below average receiver. So what do we do with a guys with those specific talents? Why make him our #1 go to guy of course.

Devin Hester's role in the offense has always been nothing more than a monument to the stubbornness and marginal stupidity of our coaches and former GM. If he had played 3 years of varsity ball as a WR in college there was an outside chance that with another three under his belt in the NFL he may finally have adjusted to the role and become at least a decent flanker but there was no way he'd ever be consistent enough to be our #1 guy and I think the greatest majority of us could see that. So how come our $5 mil per year HC couldn't see what a bunch of rank amateurs could?

Now in his 7th season he may have finally gained the equivalent of those 3 college years and three NFL years needed to understand how to be a functional and productive member of an NFL offense. And after 6 wasted years of trying to make him a #1 we've finally got ourselves a legitimate #1 All Pro WR and a guy who could very well become a top producing #2 with Jay Cutler throwing to him as he has done ever since they were college teammates at Vandy. Two starter Jay trusts implicitly to be where they need to be to catch the ball when he throws it their way.

Now............for the love of God can we finally end this "Devin Hester is our #1 WR" experiment and put him in the slot where he's belonged ever since the idea to convert him from a pass defender to a pass receiver began during the 2007 season? Just imagine the terror we can induce in an opponents DC by having him figure out how if he assigns his #1 and #2 CB's to cover Marshall and Bennett who he's gonna leave covering Devin Hester? If you were an NFL DC would you want him being covered by your NB or a Safety????

Matt Bowen is a 7 year vet NFL Safety and if he can see the matchup problems that will create as well as we can then I would think that should be good enough for Mike Tice and the Bears to make the move that has been so obvious to all of us for so long. When you line Hester up wide you force him to the side of the where he can be hemmed in or bumped out of bounds. Isn't this exactly why teams always try to angle punts toward the sidelines and take away the middle of the field from him where his options make him the most dangerous open field runner in the NFL?

No one wants to give him his shot at returning a punt from between the hash marks. So what happens when you make him into a slot receiver and he spends the entire game getting his shots from between the hash marks with the passes that are thrown to him? Teams can control where he gets the ball on punts but they have no control over where he gets his receptions and he's virtually assured of being open far more often in this scenario just because of who will be assigned to cover him.

If the Bears don't finally make this switch I give up. It's time Devin Hester was finally put into a position from which he can succeed as an NFL receiver and whatever additional productivity we get from it is just one more way our passing game finally drags itself into competition with the elite. We have the QB. We finally have a top notch #1 and #2 receiving combo and we have a guy who can potentially become one of the most dangerous and difficult to defense #3 Slot Receivers in the league. Just how hard of a decision can it be to do what's been so obvious for so long?

Martz wanted to do this when he first came on board and either JA orLovie stopped that. Im thinking JA cause he always referred to Hester as our big money wr but I wouldnt put it passed Lovie to act like he knows how an offense should be run.

Im still in Hester fatigue and would like to add another wr to develop or in our case thanks to Drake undevelop if thats a word

I'm willing to give it one more try because the NFL has destroyed the KR game. But if it doesn't work this year, then the Bears need to give up already. I mean Hester is almost 30.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by soulman

How many times has this been suggested by nearly every member of this forum. If Tice finally sees the light of day and moves him are we all due a consulting fee? Can we truly claim that we have more football smarts than the average Monday AM "Armchair QB's"?

This has been SOOOOOOO very obvious for SOOOOOOO very long that it's ridiculous that it hasn't been done yet. Some may disagree with me on this but trying to make Hester into a legit #1 WR is another legacy from the Angelo era. Giving him a $40 mil contract (much of which he won't earn) demanded we do something with besides just accept that he was a superhuman return man but a below average receiver. So what do we do with a guys with those specific talents? Why make him our #1 go to guy of course.

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Yep, I remember well how many of us said Hester would do well in the slot. And then we got the ol' "oh your not a coach, never played pro, yada yada." Imagine if he had been working the slot for a few years already.

Hester's cap hit gets REALLY big next season so I hope he produces. Otherwise I wouldn't be surprised to see him become a cap casualty.

* Yea I know sacrilege to even suggest this, but it IS a possibility ..... now go ahead and bite my ear off .

Quote:

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Originally Posted by motownbear

Martz wanted to do this when he first came on board and either JA orLovie stopped that. Im thinking JA cause he always referred to Hester as our big money wr but I wouldnt put it passed Lovie to act like he knows how an offense should be run.

Im still in Hester fatigue and would like to add another wr to develop or in our case thanks to Drake undevelop if thats a word

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by BigBadPapaBear

I'm willing to give it one more try because the NFL has destroyed the KR game. But if it doesn't work this year, then the Bears need to give up already. I mean Hester is almost 30.

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I'm in 100% agreement with both of you. Mo you made a really good point. Do you guys remember how defensive Angelo would become over any criticism directed at him over his personnel decisions. There had to be a moment when to management, ownership and the press he needed to justify why he was giving Hester a $40 mil deal when he turned down giving BB that much and BB was actually a WR not a converted CB and KR/PR specialist.

So Angelo makes up his mind that Hester is his upcoming #1 WR and that's how he can justify the deal. Problem is Hester is nowhere near ready or good enough for that role. The guy wasn't even a WR in college for cripes sake. Most WR take 3 years of NFL ball before they breakout and that's guys who played at least two or three years of WR in college. Let's face it we were all, team included, mislead by Angelo's incompetent dreaming and self-justification.

BBPB you hit the nail on the head too. Hester's days as a KR are about done if not fully and completely done. Knox outdid him last year because nobody will risk kicking to Hester and giving up a big score unless they can bounce it to him and get him covered before he gets up to speed. I'm betting Weems will be handling kickoffs this year and maybe Thomas as well. Thomas is big enough to be an effective blocker playing short and talented enough to return if the squib short. There some degree of craftiness going on here as Toub adjusts to these new kickoff rules. In the alternative we move Hester into the slot and get him touches that way. Maybe less impact in the return game but a whole lot more chances for impact plays on offense.

Hester is going into his 7th season and he's nearing the 30 years of age. If he loses his speed and elusiveness as a returner that part of his game is over but he can still extend his career if he can learn to be an effective slot guy. Who knows, his gifts as a HOF return guy may leave him soon or like Darrell Green the guy may last into his lat 30's without any sign of slowing down. On way of the other the Bears are preparing for life without Devin Hester the "you are ridiculous" return guy.

What I see happening is something I never saw under JA. In certain ways we're thinking ahead to what we need not only this year but over the next two of three seasons beyond this one. I see Emery developing a strategy to get us on top and keep us on top be addressing upcoming issues before they become a problem. That's something JA sucked at which is why we were always in the midst of those "patchwork solutions". The ones you were talking about that drive you crazy mo.

There's a real change in the way we do business starting to happen now and I hope it keeps up. I see us doing more things to assure continued success like the Pats and Packers do than I have ever seen during Angelo's tenure. Maybe the days of seeing annual "Chinese Fire Drills" with holes in the roster are over. Maybe be finally have a GM who's the man with a plan. God I sure hope so.