3rd time's a charm: Former Bears star Devin Hester gets call to Hall of Fame

(670 The Score) Bears great Devin Hester, the best return man in NFL history, will be enshrined among the game’s immortals.

Hester has been elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a member of its 2024 modern-era class, as announced Thursday night at the NFL Honors ceremony in Las Vegas.

"Devin revolutionized the game," Bears chairman George McCaskey said. "No one had seen anything like him, and there hasn't been anyone like him since. He had opposing head coaches telling their special teams coordinators 'don't kick to that guy' and they suffered the consequences when the message didn't get through. We're delighted that the Hall has recognized Devin's special talents."

The honor came in Hester’s third year as a finalist. He'll enter alongside fellow Bears greats Julius Peppers and Steve McMichael, a senior selection.

An 11-year NFL veteran, Hester is the NFL's all-time leader in return touchdowns with 20, including 14 punt return touchdowns. He was selected by the Bears in the second round of the 2006 NFL Draft and played eight seasons for Chicago. Hester recorded 19 of his record 20 return touchdowns with the Bears.

“Whenever you say that somebody is the best at a position in the NFL, when you say they’re the best, the greatest of all time, he should be in the Hall of Fame,” former Bears head coach Lovie Smith said of Hester after his retirement in 2017.

Peppers was a nine-time Pro Bowl selection who posted 159.5 sacks over 17 NFL seasons, including four years with the Bears from 2010-’13. He recorded 37.5 sacks over 64 games in Chicago. Peppers also played 10 seasons with the Panthers and three seasons with the Packers.

A star defensive tackle who played for the Bears from 1981-'93 amid his 15-year NFL career, McMichael is best known for his role in the middle of Chicago’s dominant defense in the team's 1985 Super Bowl-winning season. McMichael recorded 95 career sacks, including 92.5 sacks over 191 games with the Bears, and he earned first-team All-Pro honors in 1985 and 1987.

With the additions of Hester, Peppers and McMichael, the Bears now have 40 members of their franchise in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Chris Emma covers the Bears, Chicago’s sports scene and more for 670TheScore.com. Follow him on Twitter @CEmma670 .