The Facts:
When we last heard from Hester, he had backed off his threat to retire but was still suggesting he might benefit from a fresh start with another franchise. Tuesday, Hester used a post on his Instagram account to imply he has had a change of heart. The post read: "For all my Bears fan #yes. I'm a bear 4 life.# Beardown!!!!!"
Reported by ESPN.com
Fantasy Football Diehards Line:
So what exactly does it mean that Hester is a "bear 4 life?" According to ESPN.com's Kevin Seifert, at this point, all we can say is that Hester expects to play for the Bears in 2013. Seifert's understanding also is that the Bears have plans for Hester in 2013 and don't want him to move on. Entering this week, Hester had one year remaining on the contract extension he signed in 2008. It called for a $1.857 million base salary, a $250,000 workout bonus and a cap figure of $2.940 million. Seifert went on to suggest it's not hard to imagine that new special teams coordinator Joe DeCamillis would prefer Hester, the greatest returner in NFL history, on his team rather than elsewhere. It's not clear if the Bears have any plans for Hester on offense -- GM Phil Emery said last month at the NFL scouting combine that Hester will "compete to be our returner" -- but Hester might well be satisfied with that role. As he approaches his 31st birthday, Seifert believes it's best for Hester and the Bears to understand what he is -- and isn't. Given his past failures to meet expectations as a receiver that makes a lot of sense.
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