Devin Hester has said that he may retire from playing in the NFL following the conclusion of the regular season.

The wide receiver played in a reduced role during the 2012 season, making just five starts for the Chicago Bears, and scoring one touchdown.

The 30-year-old told the Chicago Tribune: "I have my workers' comp papers in my pocket. See how I feel, go home and talk to my wife, my family. See where we go from there.

"I've got two beautiful kids, man, young. Two boys. A lot of stress has been on my mind lately."

Hester later tweeted: "Let me make myself clear the reason why I feel like retiring has nothing to do with Lovie Smith getting fired. It's hard to play this game when you're not happy or having fun at what you love to do in life."

Hester has spent seven seasons at the Bears, scoring a total of 14 touchdowns.