LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Devin Hester likened his eight-year tenure with the Chicago Bears to a relationship, saying you "might be fortunate when that relationship is not meant [to be]," adding that as an Atlanta Falcon, "I'm in a relationship where I'm happy now."
Hester also claimed the Bears never offered him a contract to return last offseason.
The sentiment within the organization is the club did make a pitch to bring back Hester at a rate not as lucrative as the three-year, $9 million he signed in March to join the Falcons.
"Chicago didn't offer me anything," Hester said. "They didn't offer me [a] contract. They didn't call me period, pretty much. I didn't hear from Chicago. They didn't say they were going to re-sign me. All I know is they were just going in a different direction."
The Bears informed Hester on March 6 he wouldn't be re-signed for 2014, and shortly after, general manager Phil Emery released a statement thanking the record-setting return man for his contributions.
Chicago parted ways with future Hall of Fame linebacker Brian Urlacher similarly.
After spending time moonlighting as a receiver with the Bears, Hester focused solely on the return game during his final season in Chicago. Multiple sources said Hester no longer wanted to play offense due to an inability to get on the same page with Bears quarterback Jay Cutler, who the sources said, grew impatient with the return man's struggles to absorb concepts on offense.
Like Cutler, Hester played for three offensive coordinators -- and in three different systems -- in four years from 2009-12.
Asked specifically whether he asked to not play offense because of Cutler, Hester said, "I don't want to talk about what happened last year. Right now, I'm just focusing on Atlanta. I've got a quarterback that I'm dealing with now where I'm working on some things. I'm happy here. The chemistry is great, great quarterback. Being around him, I'm just happy to be here."
In Atlanta, Hester has become a contributor to the offense, catching 14 balls on 19 targets for 212 yards and a touchdown. Hester also scored on a 20-yard reverse against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, in addition to breaking the NFL's record for return touchdowns in the same game.
Hester made the Pro Bowl three times as a Bear (2006, 2007, 2010) and admits to still being bothered about the team, which drafted him in the second round in 2006, deciding against bringing him back for a ninth season.
"I just had to take it the way it was, pretty much. I felt they just went in a new direction," Hester said. "If you've been with a team for over six, seven, eight years -- however many years -- if you've been there for a long time, it bothers you when your contract is up and the team doesn't even come and offer you anything. It bothers me, but at the same time, everything happens for a reason. Sometimes what you want might not be the best fit for you."