Matt Forte fully expected to play this week
Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte (22) looks to get past St. Louis Rams outside linebacker Alec Ogletree (52) during the third quarter at the Edward Jones Dome. Mandatory Credit: Scott Kane-USA TODAY Sports
Chicago Bears star running back Matt Forte left last week’s game against the St. Louis Rams with a nasty looking right knee injury, but luckily it was ruled that Forte merely suffered a minor hyperextension of his knee. Forte came back into the game and finished with 77 rushing yards on 16 carries, as well as 40 receiving yards on seven receptions. There is little question that Forte is one of the elite all-purpose backs in this league, and Jamaal Charles is probably the only back who is better at playing well in every phase of the game.
Forte is fully expected to play in this week’s game against the Minnesota Vikings, and he should have another big performance on the stat sheet against a poor Vikings defense. The odds of Forte having a big game will increase if Vikings starting linebacker Erin Henderson is benched as a disciplinary measure for his DUI last week (Henderson did not play against the Green Bay Packers).
Although Forte missed yesterday’s practice due to the knee injury, there doesn’t seem to be any worry that Forte will miss this week’s game. In fact, it would be a surprise for him not to practice today. Bears head coach Marc Trestman reiterated his optimism regarding Forte’s Week 13 status, via ESPN Chicago’s Jeff Dickerson, “I’m still optimistic that [Forte will play on Sunday]. I feel pretty good that he’ll start getting some work tomorrow. We’ll see where he is at, but I’m going in optimistic.”