The Chicago Bears will have Matt Forte out with an injury in Week 9 and that makes Jeremy Langford a solid fantasy football pickup option to start on Sunday. Forte is dealing with a knee injury for Jay Cutler and he is expected to miss at least two weeks and that will put pressure on players like Langford, Alshon Jeffery, Martellus Bennett and Cutler on offense.
Forte has been one of the most productive backs in football this season and reports have him out at least two weeks with a knee injury. According to ESPN.com, Chris Mortensen reports that Forte is dealing with an MCL injury and he will not need surgery on the knee. Mortenson added that Forte "obviously" isn't playing on Sunday and that he likely won't be ready for "this week or the week after." Langford came into the game against the Vikings for Forte and now he likely will start at running back.
Mortensen also reported that the Bears are considering bringing in Montee Ball as a free agent after the injury to Forte. Ball worked with offensive coordinator Adam Gase in Denver and he could be a short term solution after he was let go by the Broncos. The Bears were optimistic that Forte was not seriously injured and the medical tests confirmed that he will not need surgery on the knee. Forte should be able to return this season as long as he doesn't have any setbacks.
Forte had 548 yards in seven games this season and he also added 25 receptions for 219 yards out of the backfield as a receiver. Forte was mentioned in trade rumors leading into the deadline, but nothing came close to happening and now Langford will take over for Forte. According to Jeff Dickerson at ESPN, the Bears are going to push Langford as the lead back and Dickerson wrote that "it would be a surprise" if Langford doesn't get at least 15-20 carries against the Chargers this week.
The Bears like Langford over Antone Smith and Ka'Deem Carey and he will be the feature back on Sunday after putting up 46 yards on 12 carries against the Vikings. Langford has two touchdowns this season and 80 rushing yards in seven games, but he could get a major boost over the next couple weeks and potentially more if Forte doesn't return right away. Cutler and the Bears will try and keep the run game consistent even with Forte out.
Alshon Jeffery missed a chunk of time with an injury early in the season, but he has returned and made an immediate impact for the Bears. Jeffery had 10 catches for 116 yards and a TD against the Vikings and in his last two games he has over 250 receiving yards on 18 catches with two touchdowns. Jeffery is one of the best start options in fantasy for this week along with Bennett, who has 37 catches for 324 yards this season. If Langford can't get things going, expect Cutler to try and find these two a lot on Sunday.
