Hester says he's ready to be No. 1

Coming off a 51-catch season with a team-best 665 receiving yards, Devin Hester is the only player on the roster who can be considered even close to a No. 1 wide receiver, and with no help expected in free agency, he's destined to be the main man again, unless the Bears happen to strike gold in the draft.

"It's important for me to play like a No. 1 receiver," Hester said. "That's my biggest goal. I feel like I have the ability to play as a No. 1 receiver, and I'm feeling real good and confident. Kyle (Orton) is coming out here throwing great passes and organizing the receivers and putting them in the right spots. That's what it's all about, being on the same page as the quarterback."

Asked if Hester could be a go-to guy in the passing game, coach Lovie Smith seemed comfortable with the idea.

"You talked to Devin, right?" Smith said "What did he tell you? He told you he was the No. 1 receiver, right? He definitely has No. 1 receiver-type ability. At the end of (last) year, Devin was definitely playing like a No. 1 receiver and I'm excited about this second year of him being a full-time wide receiver."

In his last six games last season, Hester caught 25 passes for 347 yards. At that pace over 16 games, he'd have 67 receptions for 925 yards.

Your word's OK: Considering offensive left tackle Chris Williams had back surgery before the preseason even started last year and then sat, watched and rehabbed for seven games before making his NFL debut, it might have seemed like his rookie season lasted forever.

But the first-round pick, who is being given the starting job to lose, keeps it in perspective while putting it in the past.

"It wasn't as long for me as it was for (rookie running back) Matt (Forte), who played like 20 games," Williams said. "But still it was a long year mentally because of going through the surgery and all that. It was a lot all in one year, but I'm ready to roll now."

Williams was asked if he had any lingering health problems.

"No, there's nothing wrong," he said. "You want to examine me or something?"