Benson is handed the job even though he did nothing to earn it and the Bears just give away Jones for a 3rd round pick and then trade away the pick as well.

Jerry drafts Matt Forte in the 2nd round even though the team disparately needed to address the O line and the WR corps and Benson is cut so they get no compensation.
The Bears sign Chester Taylor to back up Forte for a lot more money than they pay Forte and then they end up cutting him too.
More money spent on the wrong players while the O line and WRs just look worse.

Now they play hardball with their best offensive player and he will probably end up leaving with nothing in return and they will either draft yet another RB or depend on Bell and the apparently washed up Barber.

THIS is Jerry Angelo.
THIS is the kind of clueless nonsense he has been pulling since day one.
THIS is why the Bears future looks so dim.

I don’t want to see what the Bears look like in 2 or 3 years from now.
They should have shown him the door after the 2009 season.

Thanks alot.

Signed,
Matt Forte

Let’s be serious, the o-line should be taking Forte out to eat for making THEM look better. Imagine what he’d be doing with a decent o-line.

He’s not a Darren McFadden, but he clearly is worth more than 600k.

With Gore, CJ, AP, and DeAngelo all getting big contracts this season, it just goes to show that big pay days for running backs doesn’t translate into wins.

Sure, Forte is the most effective offensive player for Chicago, but if 2400 yards this season translates into .500 record then why pay him?

If the Bears end up in the playoffs again, offer him a big contract. If he doesn’t want to take the offer, then Franchise Tag him.

In two seasons from now he’ll for sure be on the decline for two reasons: 1st he got paid, 2nd the shelf life for a feature back in the NFL is only about 5 years.

All that said … I’m not terribly upset with not giving Forte a long term deal. I wish him the best and hope he gets what he wants. That said, Forte’s going to be around 1100 rushing attempts by season’s end. Add in the receptions he’s gotten, along with the work he’s had to do in pass-pro, that’s a ton of wear and tear on a big running back.

Typically, backs have around, what 7-8 years, roughly, of heavy usage before they start to slow down. This would be 4 years for Forte already, assuming no injuries this year. That’s a heavy, heavy workload already. If the Bears can afford franchising him the next year, or two, that is probably in the team’s best interests, unless Forte agrees to say, a 3 year deal (which seems unlikely).

Running backs are the most fungible assets in pro football. The Redskins drafted a good looking kid in Roy Helu. Ryan Torain and Tim Hightower were 5th round picks.

Thanks for your pointless troll comment. Detroit is deserving of nothing. Your fans have been as fair-weather as possible in their down years. Selling out the stadium is a small representation of the fans attitude. Most of you became completely apathetic and stayed off these boards and never wore jerseys, etc.

Bears by 10 Monday night. Restore the purr, kittens fans!

They were always cheap with assistant coaches (Rivera made more money as an INSIDE LB Coach with SD than he did as a Defensive Coordinator) – but they have three former head coaches on the roster now.

It boggles my mind why they’re not paying Forte. He IS their MVP on both sides of the ball right now, and should be for the next few years.

I doubt cutler would want to take them to dinner anytime soon…

For a team in a great market, with a great fan base, the Bears FO are so fricken cheap. They’d be left behind like the Blackhawks were if they didn’t overachieve every year. Could you imagine this team if you just add 1 good OLineman, and 1 not-converted WR? It boggles the mind how they play well with the roster they “built.” That’s why Hester is so valuable.

Actually explains a great deal….

He’s never put up less than 1,500 yards from scrimmage in any season, and he had a hammy injury in year two. He also rushes behind one of the worst offensive lines in the NFL.

The dude clearly deserved $18million guaranteed – but the price went up once Peterson and Chris Johnson signed their deals, who got much more than that.

If Angelo has Tim Ruskell talking about Shaun Alexander not trying after getting his big contract, then he’s a frickin’ idiot. Shove ‘em all out the frickin’ door and bring in Cowher and whomever. I’m so sick of this regime.

Stick a fork in the defense in two years too, as Urlacher, Briggs, Peppers and Tillman are fading now.

Bears management says “Hey, lets replace the crappy field………………..NAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If he continues to play as he has through the first four games, this situation will only gain more attention and more buzz from the media; and the asking price will only keep climbing.

I can see Uncle Jerry wait until the season is over, and if the Bears are able to, slap the franchise tag on Forte and really make a bigger mess out of this situation than he (Angelo) already has.

Bottom Line: Pay Forte now!