Matt Forte is confident he ends the season with the Chicago Bears. The running back has had his name come up in multiple reports as the trade deadline gets closer. With the Bears not looking like playoff contenders before the bye week, Forte would be a great asset to trade for the team as they aim to rebuild key pieces on the roster. However, the price might be too steep to draw interest.
Forte is the best players the Bears have and at 29 he is very valuable in the league. Any contending team needing run game help would be wise to take a look at Forte considering the consistency of his numbers. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Media, the Bears are clearly in a rebuilding year and they are open to trading Forte. However, with a $6.64 million base salary for this season paired with the high draft pick Chicago will request, no deal is expected to be made. If someone were will to take on that high-priced deal for a one-season rental, Forte could be headed out of the Windy City, but even the running back knows he is staying put.
"I think it's funny," Forte said, via FOX Sports. "The media, I don't know. I guess they start to speculate and then they report it as news and it takes off. That's how news gets more and more views, likes and listens, I guess. So they were speculating when the draft was coming up this past offseason that I was going to be traded then and nothing happened. So I can only control how I play on the football field. I don't really worry about it. I just think it'd be crazy to trade me anyways."
The Bears will have some tough decisions to make in the offseason and retaining Forte for the year will certainly dictate some of those moves. So far the Bears have made no indication that they will re-sign the running back. Forte will not come cheap despite his age and Chicago has to be concerned about re-tooling the defense and re-signing Alshon Jeffery who has an expiring deal. Martellus Bennett is also expected to continue his commands for a higher-paying contract. Forte might be the odd man out.
If the Bears are not going to re-sign Forte, they should trade him now and not later. The team has two wins on the season right now. There is barely a dim light at the end of the tunnel for this year. Forte could earn the Bears a solid couple of draft picks to allow them to replace the departed Jared Allen, Jon Baustic and potentially invest in new quarterback options.
