Hester ready for Sunday

Bears wide receiver Devin Hester returned to practice Friday and said he would be ready to play Sunday against the Arizona Cardinals.

Hester had missed practice Wednesday and Thursday because of a sore ankle. He practiced with his teammates Friday in shorts and shoulder pads at Halas Hall, and Bears coach Lovie Smith said the wide receiver officially would be listed as questionable.

"I'm 100 percent," said Hester, who leads the Bears with 39 receptions for 454 yards. "I'm ready."

Hester stepped around a question about whether he would be healthy enough to return punts.

"I heard on the radio, you all said Earl [Bennett] was going to do it," Hester said with a smile.

We'll see Sunday.

So far this season, Hester is fifth in the NFL with an average punt return of 12.5 yards. A list of the top five punt returners is below.

1. Patrick Crayton, Cowboys, 16.6 yards per punt return
2. Joshua Cribbs, Browns, 16.4 yards
3. DeSean Jackson, Eagles, 15.6 yards
4. Quan Cosby, Bengals, 13.1 yards
5. Devin Hester, Bears, 12.5 yards

Bennett also has proved to be a capable punt returner. He has averaged 15.8 yards per punt return, but his four returns are not enough to qualify for the NFL leaderboard.

-Tom Musick