The Bears have confirmed today that Devin Hester, the Returner-cum-Receiver responsible for roughly all of Chicago's non-offensive scoring (so roughly all of Chicago's scoring full stop then...) last season, has got his contract.
Hester held out of Training Camp for all of a day in protest at his base salary of just $445,000 in the upcoming season, but he has 30m reasons to be happy now, after signing a new four year deal with $15m in guarantees.
Hester's value was difficult to determine, and initial reports from ESPN indicate that the Bears have wisely got the deal done while Hester has little leverage as a Wide Receiver. If he achieves a certain level of production at the position, he will be rewarded, but the team has largely avoided paying an exorbitant amount for someone who is unproven as a receiver. Also according to ESPN, Hester will be due a whopping $10m roster bonus in 2012 (the final year of the deal) if he meets certain performance-based criteria.
As we say, if Hester has a good year as the no.1 receiver this year, the Bears will consider the contract a steal. If not, they haven't lost, as his value as a pure returner is probably in line with the basic salaries over the life of the deal.
The contract is the final piece of a puzzle that the Bears have managed to successfully complete in the last few years, and ties up almost every indespensible player on the team for the next 5 years.
Showing posts with label Devin Hester. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Devin Hester. Show all posts
Sunday, 27 July 2008
Friday, 20 June 2008
A happy Bear?
In what is a startling development today, DT Tommie Harris became the first Chicago Bear for over 40 years to actually have anything good to say about the team's front office.
Ok, a slight exaggeration, but it is refreshing to see something coming out of Halas Hall that doesn't reflect badly on the team's poor personel record over the last few years.
"We didn't try to go out there and talk about one another or dispute different things, and I feel like we did it all in-house," The league's best paid Defensive Tackle ever said today. A cynic might say that he has an extra $40m in his pocket and is obviously going to be happy, but the three time pro-bowler has every chance of being a Bear for life at this rate.
Harris has been a priority for the Bears as far as the recent contract disputes have been concerned. Certainly he is arguably as important as Brian Urlacher, who despite being the focal point of the team, is reliant on a skill set that could well decline rapidly in the next few years. Harris is still just 25, having entered the league aged 21. The one issue that could affect him is durability, but he has shown a willingness to play hurt, and has been effective in such situations, including a career best 8 sacks last year.
Where this leaves Urlacher is anyone's guess. Devin Hester is probably still above him on the Bears' list of contracts that need re-working, but it could be that they throw a token guaranteed payment to him in the next few months (a-la the Jets and Laveranues Coles), and Urlacher is finally 'educated' as to the value of his deal.
Ok, a slight exaggeration, but it is refreshing to see something coming out of Halas Hall that doesn't reflect badly on the team's poor personel record over the last few years.
"We didn't try to go out there and talk about one another or dispute different things, and I feel like we did it all in-house," The league's best paid Defensive Tackle ever said today. A cynic might say that he has an extra $40m in his pocket and is obviously going to be happy, but the three time pro-bowler has every chance of being a Bear for life at this rate.
Harris has been a priority for the Bears as far as the recent contract disputes have been concerned. Certainly he is arguably as important as Brian Urlacher, who despite being the focal point of the team, is reliant on a skill set that could well decline rapidly in the next few years. Harris is still just 25, having entered the league aged 21. The one issue that could affect him is durability, but he has shown a willingness to play hurt, and has been effective in such situations, including a career best 8 sacks last year.
Where this leaves Urlacher is anyone's guess. Devin Hester is probably still above him on the Bears' list of contracts that need re-working, but it could be that they throw a token guaranteed payment to him in the next few months (a-la the Jets and Laveranues Coles), and Urlacher is finally 'educated' as to the value of his deal.
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