Chicago Bears Position Review: Running Backs

Matt Forte — 898 yards rushing, 389 yards receiving, 7 total touchdowns

The players may be playing a game on the field, but football is a business off it. Matt Forte understands that. He is on the wrong side of age 30, and that is bad for a running back, and it seems as if the Chicago Bears think that as well.

Forte had a solid season, but not a typical one for him. His rushing total was the lowest of his career, but he did miss three games. His 4.1 yards per carry average was better than last season, so if he had those three games he would probably get his fourth consecutive 1,000-yard season.

That is where the question comes when talking about Forte — his age.

Forte has been a workhorse for the Chicago Bears, but his three missed games were the most since he missed four games in 2011. At his age, and considering how running backs get beat up, he may be missing out on more games as he proceeds.

This season, Forte was still dependable. He was a big part of the offense again, though not as much as he was last season (again, the three missed games had an effect on that). This season, he touched the ball on 28 percent of the Chicago Bears’ plays. Last season, his touches were at 41 percent.

The best-case scenario would be for Forte and the Chicago Bears to make some concessions and work to bring him back. In order to have a good running game, a team needs to have a good tandem, and the Forte and Jeremy Langford tandem showed that it is very good. Together, they had 11 rushing touchdowns, which is as many or more than seventeen TEAMS, and they could be better next season.

It may not happen, however. The Chicago Bears look like they are ready to move on.

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