Devin Hester set a standard in becoming first Pro Football Hall of Fame kick/punt returner

Steve Doerschuk studied the Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024 from an Ohio perspective. Devin Hester broke into the NFL in 2006 and played most of his career with the Chicago Bears.

For years, Josh Cribbs has hoped out loud that the best men from his world will be considered for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

He got his wish when his return-man contemporary Devin Hester was elected this year.

Cribbs was a Cleveland bright spot from 2005-12, when the Browns posted a 43-85 record while the Steelers played in three Super Bowls. He even had a 100-yard kickoff return against Pittsburgh.

Hester played similar roles for the Bears from 2006-13, but on teams with a much better record, 72-55.

Cribbs' career kickoff and punt return numbers were strong, but not as strong as Hester's. He must hope someone sells voters on not just the returns, but also his excellence at tackling return men, along with his contributions on offense.

It's a tough sell, and for now, Hester is the first Hall of Famer elected mostly for his return exploits.

Cribbs and Hester can be compared on four statistical fronts.

• Punt returns: Cribbs averaged 10.7 yards on 222 opportunities and scored three touchdowns. Hester averaged 11.7 yards on 315 chances and scored 14 touchdowns.

• Kickoff returns: Cribbs averaged 26.1 yards on 426 chances and scored eight TDs. Hester averaged 24.9 yards on 295 returns and scored five TDs.

• Receiving: Cribbs caught 110 passes for 1,175 yards (10.7 average) and scored seven TDs. Hester caught 255 passes for 3,311 yards (13.0 average) and scored 16 TDs.

• Rushing: Cribbs ran 141 times for 808 yards (5.7 average) and scored two TDs. Hester ran 36 times for 116 yards (3.2 average), with one TD.

A non-statistical observation: the 5-foot-11, 190-pound Hester played extremely hard; the 6-foot-1, 215-pound Cribbs played harder.

Cribbs made quick reads of the slenderest openings and tore toward trouble with no regard for his body. Sometimes one pitied the gunners Cribbs ran over. One feared for Cribbs' safety while appreciating the jolt he tried to give his team.

Some people wondered why the Browns didn't use Cribbs at running back, rather than assigning only spot carries as a wildcat quarterback. As a dual-threat QB at Kent State, he ran for 38 touchdowns.

Hester's style attracted more publicity, partly because he played in a giant media market, partly because he was faster and more elusive, partly because of his punt return prowess, partly because he did more as a receiver.

Hester certainly had the look. He conjured images of Bears legend Gayle Sayers, a sensational return man before knee injuries slowed him. Sayers scored eight kickoff/punt return TDs within his first 40 games in the 1960s.

Sayers played at the same time as Cleveland's Leroy Kelly, who produced three punt return TDs in his first two NFL seasons, when Jim Brown was the main running back. After Brown retired, Kelly assumed the ball-carrying load, finishing second to Sayers in the 1966 rushing-yards race.

Both Sayers and Kelly are in the Hall of Fame mostly for what they did as running backs.

Hester's road to Canton veered through Florida. On the Miami Hurricanes track team, he ran sprints and won a Big East long jump championship.

The football Hurricanes tended to let Hester do a little bit of everything but not a lot of anything.

The Bears drafted him 57th overall in 2006, imagining a return man who might come along as a cornerback. He was not a popular pick.

Cribbs wasn't a draft pick, period. He started at quarterback for four years at Kent State before signing with the Browns in 2005.

Hester was in his final year at Miami when he returned 22 punts (14.2 average), returned seven kickoffs (16.1), ran 15 times for 94 yards, caught five passes for 55 yards, and, on defense, made 11 tackles and one interception.

He had just one identity as a Bears rookie: Return dynamo.

The Bears were good without him, going 11-5 in '05. With him in 2006, they were a 13-3 team that reached the Super Bowl.

His late 83-yard punt return delivered a 24-23 win over the Cardinals. His 108-yard kickoff return sparked a road win over the Giants. He finished his rookie regular season with three punt return TDs and two kickoff return scores.

In Super Bowl XLI in Miami, he returned the opening kickoff 92 yards for a quick 7-0 lead.

Hester counts that as his favorite playing memory, while lamenting the outcome, a 29-17 Colts win.

Hester had plenty of return-man training in college. Cribbs got none.

Cribbs was mostly a kickoff return man and special teams cover guy in his first two Browns seasons, when Dennis Northcutt returned punts. In his third season, Cribbs nicely replaced Northcutt on punt returns and also led the NFL in kickoff return average at 30.7 (Hester's average that year was 21.7).

Cribbs was an iron man, appearing in all 16 games in all eight of his Browns seasons, prior to playing for the Jets in 2013 and the Colts 2014.

Hester missed only five games in his first nine seasons, the ninth with the Falcons, before encountering injury trouble.

His best all-around season was 2010, when the Bears lost close to Green Bay in the NFC championship game. On the year, he scored three punt return TDs, averaged 35.6 yards on kickoff returns (albeit only 12 of them), and caught 40 passes as a starting wideout.

Cribbs and Hester collided just once, in 2009 at Soldier Field. Cribbs nearly broke a punt return for a touchdown. Hester had a game-high 71 receiving yards in a 30-6 victory.

It was the day Browns owner Randy Lerner, distraught over a 1-7 record, confessed a need for a heavy hitter in the front office. The Browns soon fired George Kokinis and hired Mike Holmgren.

Hester played at Miami when it began to be apparent head coach Larry Coker wasn't going to sustain the momentum that had been established under Butch Davis before he left for the Browns.

He led a 9-3 Miami team with four interceptions in 2004. The Hurricanes again went 9-3 in 2005, with Hester in a utility role.

From 2000-05, Miami fielded teams that included future NFL Pro Bowl picks Reggie Wayne, Ed Reed, Jeremy Shockey, Clinton Portis, Andre Johnson, Sean Taylor, Vince Wilfork, Kellen Winslow Jr. and Frank Gore.

Hester got lost as a Hurricane to an extent, but he turned heads right away in "The Windy City."

He enters the Hall of Fame in his third year of eligibility.

The swagger he carried through his playing career was reflected by his remarks upon being elected in February.

"Honestly, I thought I was going to be a first ballot," he said. "My work on the field and the confidence that I had ... I really thought so.

"But at the end of the day, man, I’m just blessed, and I’m honored to be the first returner.

"It’s hard to say who’s the No. 1 quarterback, No. 2 running back, No. 1 defensive player, but in the situation I’m in, I can honestly say I’m the No. 1 returner of all time."

Hester said there were no hard feelings.

"The moment you get that call," he said, "you feel like you're first ballot."

He added, "I feel like this is one of the stronger classes the Hall of Fame has had in recent years."

He might be slightly biased. The Class of 2024 includes Julius Peppers, his Bears teammate from 2010-13; Andre Johnson, who was his college teammate, and Steve McMichael, who played for the Bears from 1981-93.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Bears returner Devin Hester in Pro Football Hall of Fame Class of 2024