LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- One sure way to kick-start the Chicago Bears on Sunday would be for Devin Hester to break one in the return game, just as he did in 2006 when Hester had two kickoff-return touchdowns (94 and 96 yards) against the St. Louis Rams on "Monday Night Football."

Hester barely missed hitting on a couple of long returns in the first two games of the season, the most notable being a 38-yard kickoff return against the Packers at Lambeau Field.

Hester also returned a kickoff 31 yards and a punt 23 yards in Week 1 against the Indianapolis Colts.

"We've been close," Bears special-teams coordinator Dave Toub said. "We've been maybe one guy staying on his block a little longer away [from Hester breaking it] in both punt return and kick return. We're knocking on the door there.

"He's always due. Every time he has the ball he's due."

Since his rookie year in 2006, Hester leads the NFL with 47 punt returns of 20-plus yards and is one return score away from tying Deion Sanders for the most combined return touchdowns in NFL history with 19.