Matt Forte

Dual-threat running back who rewrote the Bears' rookie and receiving records.

Matt Forte (born 1985) is a former NFL running back drafted by the Chicago Bears in the second round in 2008 who played eight of his ten seasons in Chicago. Equally dangerous as a rusher and a receiver, he is one of only three players with 1,000 rushing yards and 100 catches in the same season.

Quick Facts

Number: 22
Position: Running back
Born: 10 December 1985
Birthplace: Lake Charles, Louisiana, U.S.
High school: Slidell (Slidell, Louisiana)
College: Tulane (2004–2007)
Draft year: 2008
Draft pick: 44

Facts from the source article.

Background

Taken 44th overall out of Tulane, Forte won the starting job after Cedric Benson's release and started all 16 games as a rookie. He ran for 123 yards in his debut against Indianapolis, a franchise record for a first game, and finished with rookie records of 316 carries and 1,238 yards; his 1,715 yards from scrimmage broke Gale Sayers's 1965 team mark and his 61 catches beat Mike Ditka's 1961 rookie record.

In the 2010 opener he had a career-best 151 receiving yards with touchdowns of 89 and 28 yards and was named NFC Offensive Player of the Week, and in that season's NFC Championship Game against Green Bay he became the only Bear with ten receptions in a playoff game. He ran for a career-high 205 yards against Carolina in 2011 and, despite a season-ending MCL sprain, made his first Pro Bowl, the first Bears back so honoured since Neal Anderson in 1991.

After a holdout in 2012 he signed a four-year, $32 million contract. Forte left for the New York Jets after the 2015 season and played two years there. In high school in Slidell, Louisiana, he was also a sprinter with a 10.68-second 100 metres.