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We're kicking it to Hester
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<blockquote data-quote="tromadz" data-source="post: 174582" data-attributes="member: 306"><p><a href="http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/sports/index.php?ntid=249426&ntpid=2" target="_blank">son of a *****:</a></p><p></p><p>GREEN BAY — There are those who think kicking the ball anywhere near Chicago Bears return man extraordinaire Devin Hester is sheer lunacy.</p><p></p><p>But the Green Bay Packers are not among them.</p><p></p><p>"I would never kick it to him," said NBC's John Madden, who along with play-by-play man Al Michaels will do Sunday night's nationally televised game between the teams.</p><p></p><p>But the Packers are going to take their chances against Hester. Calculated, smart chances, but chances nonetheless.</p><p></p><p>"The impact that he's made is incredible," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "We have to be very smart with the opportunities that he will have in the game because he can change a football game. (But) you don't just line up and say, 'I'm not going to kick the ball to the guy,' and it's that easy. I think everyone would have done it already."</p><p></p><p>Bears coach Lovie Smith, of course, thinks it's a great idea to keep kicking to Hester.</p><p></p><p>"Worrying so much and conceding so much to one player, I think that's hard to do," Smith said. "Devin hasn't scored a touchdown every time he's touched the ball."</p><p></p><p>No, it just seems like it.</p><p></p><p>Sunday night's game will be the 24th of Hester's career (including playoffs), and the guy already has nine touchdown returns, including a 97-yard kickoff return last week against Detroit after setting an NFL record with seven return TDs last season.</p><p></p><p>The Packers helped launch the then-rookie second-round pick's record-setting season by allowing him to return a punt 84 yards for a score in the Bears' 26-0 opening-day victory at Lambeau Field.</p><p></p><p>They held him to 1 yard on two punt returns and a 19.8-yard average on four kickoff returns when the teams met again in the New Year's Eve season finale.</p><p></p><p>"When you approach a guy like Devin Hester, it's a mind-set, a mentality," said defensive end Jason Hunter, one of the Packers' core special teamers. "Sometimes you can over-psyche yourself — be so scared of what he does that it takes away from your game. The most important thing for us is to know what we can do as a unit. You respect him, but you have to know what you can do against him."</p><p></p><p>Added special teams leader Tracy White: "We've got to keep him contained. It would be good to kick away from him, but we're going to keep him trapped in the corner. We have to stay in our lanes and play fast and fill the seams when they need to be filled."</p><p></p><p>To keep Hester cornered, punter Jon Ryan — and, to a similar extent, kicker Mason Crosby — will try to pin Hester between the sideline and the numbers with solid directional kicks and good hang time.</p><p></p><p>"I feel a lot more comfortable being able to kick it toward the sideline and not worry about hooking it out of bounds," Ryan said. "I'm still able to get some distance on it. Hopefully, on Sunday, that's working for us and I can get the ball out of bounds or close to the sidelines."</p><p></p><p>That'll be a little harder for Crosby on kickoffs, since any kicks that go out of bounds would give the Bears the ball at their 40-yard line.</p><p></p><p>"You have to kick the ball somewhere on kickoffs. You can't just kick it out of bounds and give it to them at the 40," Packers special teams coordinator Mike Stock said. "On punts, you'd like to make him run to go get it; if not quite to the boundary, close to it. Hangtime and direction are really primary principles to apply to him."</p><p></p><p>With the Bears' offensive struggles, Smith acknowledged he's toying with the idea of expanding Hester's role from scrimmage on offense.</p><p></p><p>However, for all of Hester's unique gifts, he also is prone to fumbling, having put the ball on the ground four times this year and 15 times in 23 games. Although he's only lost two of the 15, that's more fumbles than any non-quarterback in the NFL over that stretch.</p><p></p><p>"But you've got to hit him," Stock said. "He's very slippery, has great change of direction. He's got more than one gear, and he goes from first to fourth in like one step. This guy has as good of acceleration from a dead stop as anybody I've ever seen. He's like gonzo."</p><p>--------------------------------------------------------</p><p></p><p>Kickoffs and punts are going to be SO exciting. I'm going to be holding my breath every time. I have faith in our special teams though. Tracy White won't allow Hester's shennanigans.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="tromadz, post: 174582, member: 306"] [url=http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/sports/index.php?ntid=249426&ntpid=2]son of a *****:[/url] GREEN BAY — There are those who think kicking the ball anywhere near Chicago Bears return man extraordinaire Devin Hester is sheer lunacy. But the Green Bay Packers are not among them. "I would never kick it to him," said NBC's John Madden, who along with play-by-play man Al Michaels will do Sunday night's nationally televised game between the teams. But the Packers are going to take their chances against Hester. Calculated, smart chances, but chances nonetheless. "The impact that he's made is incredible," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "We have to be very smart with the opportunities that he will have in the game because he can change a football game. (But) you don't just line up and say, 'I'm not going to kick the ball to the guy,' and it's that easy. I think everyone would have done it already." Bears coach Lovie Smith, of course, thinks it's a great idea to keep kicking to Hester. "Worrying so much and conceding so much to one player, I think that's hard to do," Smith said. "Devin hasn't scored a touchdown every time he's touched the ball." No, it just seems like it. Sunday night's game will be the 24th of Hester's career (including playoffs), and the guy already has nine touchdown returns, including a 97-yard kickoff return last week against Detroit after setting an NFL record with seven return TDs last season. The Packers helped launch the then-rookie second-round pick's record-setting season by allowing him to return a punt 84 yards for a score in the Bears' 26-0 opening-day victory at Lambeau Field. They held him to 1 yard on two punt returns and a 19.8-yard average on four kickoff returns when the teams met again in the New Year's Eve season finale. "When you approach a guy like Devin Hester, it's a mind-set, a mentality," said defensive end Jason Hunter, one of the Packers' core special teamers. "Sometimes you can over-psyche yourself — be so scared of what he does that it takes away from your game. The most important thing for us is to know what we can do as a unit. You respect him, but you have to know what you can do against him." Added special teams leader Tracy White: "We've got to keep him contained. It would be good to kick away from him, but we're going to keep him trapped in the corner. We have to stay in our lanes and play fast and fill the seams when they need to be filled." To keep Hester cornered, punter Jon Ryan — and, to a similar extent, kicker Mason Crosby — will try to pin Hester between the sideline and the numbers with solid directional kicks and good hang time. "I feel a lot more comfortable being able to kick it toward the sideline and not worry about hooking it out of bounds," Ryan said. "I'm still able to get some distance on it. Hopefully, on Sunday, that's working for us and I can get the ball out of bounds or close to the sidelines." That'll be a little harder for Crosby on kickoffs, since any kicks that go out of bounds would give the Bears the ball at their 40-yard line. "You have to kick the ball somewhere on kickoffs. You can't just kick it out of bounds and give it to them at the 40," Packers special teams coordinator Mike Stock said. "On punts, you'd like to make him run to go get it; if not quite to the boundary, close to it. Hangtime and direction are really primary principles to apply to him." With the Bears' offensive struggles, Smith acknowledged he's toying with the idea of expanding Hester's role from scrimmage on offense. However, for all of Hester's unique gifts, he also is prone to fumbling, having put the ball on the ground four times this year and 15 times in 23 games. Although he's only lost two of the 15, that's more fumbles than any non-quarterback in the NFL over that stretch. "But you've got to hit him," Stock said. "He's very slippery, has great change of direction. He's got more than one gear, and he goes from first to fourth in like one step. This guy has as good of acceleration from a dead stop as anybody I've ever seen. He's like gonzo." -------------------------------------------------------- Kickoffs and punts are going to be SO exciting. I'm going to be holding my breath every time. I have faith in our special teams though. Tracy White won't allow Hester's shennanigans. [/QUOTE]
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