In a bit of a surprise, Devin Hester was unveiled on Wednesday as No. 48 on NFL Networks Top 100 players . A surprise because:
Hester is listed as a wide receiver, yet all but two highlights are of Hester as a returner, and the narration specifically says he is in the Top 100 because of his returns;
And Hester was No. 32 last year, led the NFL with a career-second-best 16.2 yards per punt return, brought two punts and a kickoff back for TDs, yet fell 16 places.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Chicago sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Go figure.
Best guess is that the Bears will have five of the NFLs top 72 players in the final ranking.
Hester joins Brian Urlacher (51) and Lance Briggs (72) in the top 100, and the final 40 players are yet to be revealed. Brandon Marshall was 61st last year and Julius Peppers stood No. 10.