Bears' Smith says Hester's injury not considered serious

Published: Oct 17, 2011 at 07:57 AM

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Teammates have seen it so many times from Devin Hester that they could be immune by now. Except, they're not.

They know something special might happen whenever the ball winds up in his hands and they can't stop watching, no matter how many times they've seen the show that was running again on Sunday night.

Hester hauled in a 48-yard touchdown pass from Jay Cutler on Chicago's first possession and topped that with a career-long, 98-yard kickoff return for a score to put away the Minnesota Vikings, 39-10.

"Every time he gets the ball in his hands he's a weapon, and he has potential to make a huge play and to get in the end zone," defensive end Israel Idonije said. "We all know he's invaluable and a big part of our offense, special teams, and why this team has that big-play potential."

The only blip in the highlight reel was that Hester left the game with a chest injury, but the Bears can breathe a little easier since it apparently wasn't serious.

Coach Lovie Smith basically brushed it off on Monday, saying, "It shouldn't be serious. We're going to put it in the bumps and bruises section."

That's good news for the Bears, who at 3-3 are trying to dig themselves out of a big hole in the NFC North. The reigning division champions trail unbeaten Green Bay by three games and Detroit by two with losses to both teams, and the last thing they needed was to fall to the struggling Vikings.

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