If You Also Have a Man-Crush on Devin Hester, Raise Your Hand
| 12
|
by user BU ICEMAN
For anybody that watched last night's MNF game between the St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears, it was hard to miss CB/KR Devin Hester. As far as the St. Louis Rams coverage team, it was another story completely. Hester ran virtually untouched on two kick returns of 94 yards and 96 yards, the second coming with the "Hands" team providing the blocking! The first KR tied the NFL record for KR's in a season with five, the second set the new record with six. Since the Hall of Fame will be calling looking for a memento of the game, I suggest that Hester gives them his shoes, provided they're cooled off by now.
Hester's electrifying returns have now sparked talk of Rookie of the Year. However, since his plays have been made on special teams, it's hard to substantiate this due to the fact that the selections are made only for offense and defense, only. Certainly, an argument can be made that he has made the most impact plays as a rookie, with the least touches.
But, I digress...Chicago Bears Head Coach Lovie Smith, unabashedly showed his man-crush all night. He was shedding tears of joy on Hester's returns and gushed during his post-game news conference, at the same time striking fear in defensive coordinators all over the league by announcing that he will be looking to get Hester touches on the offensive side of the ball. Joe Theismann, Tony Kornheiser, and Mike Tirico could not stop talking about Hester all night. Theismann and Kornheiser, in a rare show of solidarity, both started hyping Hester for Rookie of the Year. Booth guest Jim Belushi, in a blatant show of his man-crush, even vowed to name his next son Devin! In the ESPN post-game show, Chris "Boomer" Berman, never one to shy away from man-crushing, continued the Devin Hester love-fest, also getting Michael Irvin to profess his man-crush, as well. "Neon" Deion "Prime Time" Sanders has long been on record with a man-crush on Devin Hester, serving as Devin Hester's mentor while Hester was still at "The U," The University of Miami. Chicago Bears General Manager Jerry Angelo was questioned when he took Devin Hester in the Second Round of last year's NFL Draft, even though the Chicago Bears' Kick/Punt return was awful in 2005; another sign of a man-crush, drafting Hester that high.
I too am now professing my man-crush on Devin Hester, in the way a heterosexual man can profess a man-crush on another heterosexual man. (Not that there's anything wrong with that...) Every time Hester touches the ball, I hold my breath, waiting to see what lightning-quick cut and juke he'll make, waiting to see him turn on the afterburners and leave a swath of defenders in his wake. There aren't many players in the NFL that provide that suspense, and then deliver on that suspense. There's no doubt that Hester will be a Pro Bowler this year, you cannot ignore his return statistics and record setting performance this year. If the Chicago Bears make the Super Bowl this year, could we see the Devin Hester MVP, a la Desmond Howard in Super Bowl XXXI? Sure, I'm getting ahead of myself, but hey, isn't that what you do when you have a crush on someone?
