Matt Forte: Chicago Bears Need To Pay the Man
Published by Joseph Goode on October 21, 2011
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are currently 3-3. They wouldn’t be where they are now without a few amazing special teams plays by the extraordinary Devin Hester, but mainly it has been the consistent play of running back Matt Forte. So why haven’t the Bears paid the man?
Forte is currently leading the league in all-purpose yards from the line of scrimmage, is seventh in the league in rushing yards and is sixth in the league in receptions. He is on pace to be the third player in history to record 1,000 yards rushing and receiving in the same season. Did I mention that he has not fumbled all season? The Bears literally have no offense outside of Matt Forte after trading away their best pass catcher from last season, Greg Olsen.
There have been flashes where the receiving core of Hester, Knox and Williams have made plays, but more times than not they have dropped passes or ran horrible routes. It also does not help that the offensive line is plain bad.
Recently, offensive coordinator Mike Martz has been running a more balanced offense. In previous games, Martz would continually call passing plays and never allow Cutler to roll out of the pocket. I am surprised that Forte has accumulated 527 yards on the ground with Martz calling the offense.
Forte is not your prototypical running back running between the tackles and pounding the ball to gain a couple yards. He has a difficult time in getting the first down on 3rd-and-1, but he is the type of player that does everything well.
The Bears have lined up Forte all over the field. He has been in the slot, the outside receiver and in the backfield. It is hard for a linebacker, or a safety for that matter, to cover him. He has hands for a running back that haven’t been seen since Marshall Faulk.
When he finds a whole at the line, you can always expect a burst that takes him into the secondary. He is so patient when running and really understands the game of football. Forte is the type of every-down back that every NFL team wants.
The guy is 25 years old entering his prime, so why not offer him a contract that is close to what Chris Johnson received this year? Forte can also make a case for Johnson-type money because he is having a better season this year. He has been consistent throughout his four-year career and has never missed a game.
Forte has been wanting his new contract this whole season, but has not made it a distraction and has continued to put up great numbers.
The Bears have committed a good amount of money on Cutler, Peppers and Urlacher, and rightfully so. The three are very important to the Bears. However, can you say that any of those players at this point in their careers are the key to the Bears success as much as Forte has been?
The Bears are one of the top money-making franchises in sports and have the money to pay Forte. Forte is on the list as one of the top running backs along with Adrian Peterson, Arian Foster and Chris Johnson even though he does not get the recognition that they do.
General manager Jerry Angelo had offered Forte between $13 million and $14 million in guaranteed money, which falls short of what DeAngelo Williams received this summer. Are you kidding me?
He is definitely looking to get more then $20 million in guaranteed money. I don’t see why this is an issue when they recently paid Peppers, who is over 30 years of age, over $40 million in guaranteed money. The Bears cannot let Forte hit the open market this offseason because there will be at least 15 teams that are ready to throw a lot of money his way.
If the Bears do not make the playoffs this season, then expect head coach Lovie Smith and Mike Martz to get the axe. This is a team that has no identity with an aging defense in flux and ranked near the bottom of the league. The offensive line is putrid and they have a quarterback who has never proven anything in his career. The only consistency this year has been Matt Forte.
This week when the Bears travel to London to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, look for Forte to put on a show so the world can see how special he really is. He is going to rush and catch for lot of yards against a Bucs team that has had its share of problems against quality running backs.
This will be another game where Forte will prove his worth to Jerry Angelo. Hopefully Angelo will ultimately show Forte the money.
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