Return units want to break TD drought tonight in Minnesota

Special teams made the difference for the Bears in their 48-41 victory over the Vikings six weeks ago.

But they can't realistically count on getting the same level of production in the rematch at tonight at the Metrodome (Channel 5; WBBM 780-AM).

In the first game, the Bears went ahead 14-7 in the first quarter when Garrett Wolfe raced 17 yards with a Chris Kluwe punt that was blocked by rookie safety Craig Steltz, who had extra time to make the play after Kluwe dropped a perfect snap. With 4:58 left in the second quarter, another Bears rookie, cornerback Zackary Bowman, recovered a punt in the end zone that had caromed off the Vikings' Charles Gordon, giving the Bears a 24-17 late in the first half.

"I'll be honest with you, we got lucky," Bears special teams coordinator Dave Toub said. "They had a lot of bad luck in those situations, where the ball hit the guy and the (other) guy drops the ball. We weren't even going for a block, and we ended up getting (one). So let's call it what it is, we got lucky. But our guys were playing fast, and that's a credit to them."

Toub's kickoff- and punt-return units are still awaiting their first touchdown of the season after Hester had 6 last season and 5 in 2006. But the Pro Bowl return specialist has been in such a funk this season that he's been replaced on kickoff returns by Danieal Manning, who returned last week's opening kick 50 yards and was close to bringing it back all the way.

After Friday's practice, Toub was working overtime with the blocking wedge, hoping a little fine-tuning might help the Bears regain their magic.

"We showed a little bit of something last week," Toub said of the Manning opener. "We're close, we're getting closer, so we have to keep working. What we're doing is good, so we just have to keep doing it. If it means just staying on your (block) a little longer, getting the kicker or the one block at the last minute to spring him, that's what we're trying to work on right now."

Hester and Manning are both anxious to do their part and get back to the end zone.

"We're still waiting on the big (return)," said Hester, whose longest kickoff return this season in 29 attempts is 51 yards. "It's kind of surprising from the Chicago Bears that we haven't hit one yet, but we've got a couple of games left, so hopefully we can sneak a couple in before the season ends."

Hester's longest of 20 punt returns is just 25 yards, and his 6.3-yard average is 19th in the NFL. His 21.8-yard kickoff-return average is 34th in the league. He said breaking the drought on national TV tonight and in a game for first place in the NFC North would be ideal.

"It'd be a lot of relief," said Hester, who denied he's feeling the heat. "I don't really feel any pressure. I know full well what I'm capable of doing, so (pressure) is out of the equation. But at the same time I'm just really digging for it, still looking for a big return."

Manning is expected to continue returning kickoffs, in addition to playing nickel back, while Hester focuses on punt returns and playing wide receiver. Manning has averaged 28.3 yards on his 13 kickoff returns, and he said the more work he gets there the more effective he'll be.

"It just gets you that feel of how fast the game moves," Manning said. "The more touches you get, the more comfortable you feel with it. We're just a block away. I'm excited for this game because we know we've made the adjustments, and we're going to stick to the same game plan and see what we've got."

They might get it tonight, considering the Vikings are last in the league defending punt returns.