Chicago Bears Offseason 2012

[jersey cubs fan]

Congrats on turning the public against you Matt!

 

The bridges are starting to become burned. I have no doubt that the Bears could somehow rectify this if they wanted to, but I am leaning towards thinking Forte is going to be traded before the draft. Both sides, especially Forte's are handling this terribly.

 

How are the Bears handling this terribly?

 

My bet is they will sign him to an extension. Forte has very little ground to stand on. He's made about $3.5m in his career and would be a fool to hold out instead of accepting the $7.7m franchise number.

[CUBZ99]

@MattForte22: There's only so many times a man that has done everything he's been asked to do can be disrespected! Guess the GOOD GUYS do finish last....

 

 

Maybe he was talking about Marion Barber? Forte is hardly the "good guy" in all of this and it is hard to see how he could see himself as finishing last?

[davell]

Can you accept less than a 1st once someone is franchised? If so, I would definitely consider dealing him. That said he does seem to have the entire lockerrooms support. Could be a little tricky, but the bottom line is he should have accepted our previous offer.

[Smack]

Is he so warped now that he honestly believes this doesn't turn Bears fans against him?

[ctcf]

Maybe this is just some desperate attempt to gain some leverage somehow?

[Smack]

Maybe this is just some desperate attempt to gain some leverage somehow?

 

Or to sour the relationship enough that they're forced to trade him, but that didn't happen with Briggs... Of course that was pre-twitter...

[SpongeWorthy]

@MattForte22: There's only so many times a man that has done everything he's been asked to do can be disrespected! Guess the GOOD GUYS do finish last....

 

 

Maybe he was talking about Marion Barber? Forte is hardly the "good guy" in all of this and it is hard to see how he could see himself as finishing last?

 

You're over thinking it. Dude is clearly raging.

[Banedon]

“To sign yet another running back, prior to completing a contract with Matt, suggests disregard for Matt and his contributions to the Bears,” said Forte’s agent, per ESPN Chicago’s Mike Wright.

[Smack]

“To sign yet another running back, prior to completing a contract with Matt, suggests disregard for Matt and his contributions to the Bears,” said Forte’s agent, per ESPN Chicago’s Mike Wright.

 

Ok so it's cleary their strategy and Forte not going off on his own.

[minnesotacubsfan]

Well if Matt was perfectly healthy all of last season I could agree with his agent, if only slightly. But, he wasnt.

[jersey cubs fan]

Well if Matt was perfectly healthy all of last season I could agree with his agent, if only slightly. But, he wasnt.

 

Even if he was perfectly healthy all season I can't agree that signing a backup RB, which Michael Bush clearly is, suggests disregard for Forte. You need depth at the position.

[Guest]

So with Rashard Mendenhall most likely missing the upcoming season for the Steelers, how about working a Forte for Wallace trade?

[Banedon]

So with Rashard Mendenhall most likely missing the upcoming season for the Steelers, how about working a Forte for Wallace trade?

 

Wallace has said he wants more money than Fitzgerald.

 

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/03/22/report-mike-wallace-told-49ers-he-wants-more-than-larry-fitzgerald/

[ctcf]

So with Rashard Mendenhall most likely missing the upcoming season for the Steelers, how about working a Forte for Wallace trade?

 

Wallace has said he wants more money than Fitzgerald.

 

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/03/22/report-mike-wallace-told-49ers-he-wants-more-than-larry-fitzgerald/

 

http://i.imgur.com/zJyua.jpg

[rawaction]

I love the idea of signing a backup RB being "disrespectful".

 

Forte has done a ton for this team, yet every single offseason the Bears have brought in a FA RB and paid him more money. Bringing in Kevin Jones when Forte was a rookie was a non-issue. Paying a bunch of money to Chester Taylor was understandable after Forte came off a down year after 2 years of a lot of touches. Bringing in Marion Barber to do short-yardage was a little slap in the face, but something Forte could overlook. Now they brought in a 4th RB in 4 years. Bush is guaranteed 7 Mil. Forte is only guaranteed 7.7Mil. Sure it's a lot of money, but this is the NFL. Forte blows out his knee this year, it's likely he'll never seen 7.7Mil the rest of his career. Disrespectful is too strong of a word that gets thrown out too much by athletes, but it is a slap in the face when your team keeps paying guys off the street more money than you are making at your same position.

[Guest]

No, it's not.

 

Especially not after he turned down a more than fair offer already.

[Sosa21MVP]

I love the idea of signing a backup RB being "disrespectful".

 

Forte has done a ton for this team, yet every single offseason the Bears have brought in a FA RB and paid him more money. Bringing in Kevin Jones when Forte was a rookie was a non-issue. Paying a bunch of money to Chester Taylor was understandable after Forte came off a down year after 2 years of a lot of touches. Bringing in Marion Barber to do short-yardage was a little slap in the face, but something Forte could overlook. Now they brought in a 4th RB in 4 years. Bush is guaranteed 7 Mil. Forte is only guaranteed 7.7Mil. Sure it's a lot of money, but this is the NFL. Forte blows out his knee this year, it's likely he'll never seen 7.7Mil the rest of his career. Disrespectful is too strong of a word that gets thrown out too much by athletes, but it is a slap in the face when your team keeps paying guys off the street more money than you are making at your same position.

 

Bush is getting $7 million guaranteed, yes. The Bears offered Forte $15 million guaranteed. So they should not spend any money on backups just because Forte left that money on the table?

[Sosa21MVP]

No, it's not.

 

Especially not after he turned down a more than fair offer already.

 

Right. They made a fair offer, Matt chose not to take it. So for him to get pissed at every dollar they spend on filling out the roster, well that is a Matt Forte problem not a Chicago Bears problem. What, the Bears are supposed to cower in fear and not carry on the business of filling out the roster out of fear of the wrath of Matt Forte?

[Magnetic Curses]

I love the idea of signing a backup RB being "disrespectful".

 

Forte has done a ton for this team, yet every single offseason the Bears have brought in a FA RB and paid him more money. Bringing in Kevin Jones when Forte was a rookie was a non-issue. Paying a bunch of money to Chester Taylor was understandable after Forte came off a down year after 2 years of a lot of touches. Bringing in Marion Barber to do short-yardage was a little slap in the face, but something Forte could overlook. Now they brought in a 4th RB in 4 years. Bush is guaranteed 7 Mil. Forte is only guaranteed 7.7Mil. Sure it's a lot of money, but this is the NFL. Forte blows out his knee this year, it's likely he'll never seen 7.7Mil the rest of his career. Disrespectful is too strong of a word that gets thrown out too much by athletes, but it is a slap in the face when your team keeps paying guys off the street more money than you are making at your same position.

 

he should have taken the money to begin with. running backs are replaceable

[rawaction]

No, it's not.

 

Especially not after he turned down a more than fair offer already.

 

Right. They made a fair offer, Matt chose not to take it. So for him to get pissed at every dollar they spend on filling out the roster, well that is a Matt Forte problem not a Chicago Bears problem. What, the Bears are supposed to cower in fear and not carry on the business of filling out the roster out of fear of the wrath of Matt Forte?

 

 

I read the most the Bears offered was 12Mil guaranteed. Either way, 15Mil guaranteed may be nice but Lynch just got 17Mil guaranteed, Arian Foster got 20Mil guaranteed. Forte is better than Lynch. Can argue that Foster is better than Forte, but Forte has been good for longer and is basically the same age. Sure 15Mil is a "fair" offer, but it's not what the market has dictated for a RB of Forte's caliber.

 

And no, the Bears are not supposed to cower in fear (whatever that means). But it is stupid to spend money on a FA RB regardless of situation, even moreso when you just signed 3 FA RBs and they all have been failures. From Forte's point of view, it's not that the Bears are buying an insurance policy in case they can't work out a long term deal....it's the team signing a potential replacement and gaining leverage and putting their foot down in negotiations.

 

That being said, I'm not saying the Bears should pay him that money. I'm actually pretty much 50/50 on it. If they do pay him 20Mil guaranteed, fine he's earned it. If not, fine because he probably won't be worth it.

[ELCABALLO45]

I love the idea of signing a backup RB being "disrespectful".

 

Forte has done a ton for this team, yet every single offseason the Bears have brought in a FA RB and paid him more money. Bringing in Kevin Jones when Forte was a rookie was a non-issue. Paying a bunch of money to Chester Taylor was understandable after Forte came off a down year after 2 years of a lot of touches. Bringing in Marion Barber to do short-yardage was a little slap in the face, but something Forte could overlook. Now they brought in a 4th RB in 4 years. Bush is guaranteed 7 Mil. Forte is only guaranteed 7.7Mil. Sure it's a lot of money, but this is the NFL. Forte blows out his knee this year, it's likely he'll never seen 7.7Mil the rest of his career. Disrespectful is too strong of a word that gets thrown out too much by athletes, but it is a slap in the face when your team keeps paying guys off the street more money than you are making at your same position.

 

he should have taken the money to begin with. running backs are replaceable

 

Agreed 100 percent.

 

Michael Bush is a great signing for Chicago. He can catch the ball better then what people think as well. Obviously Forte is more talented but Bush is a great fallback/2nd option to him.

[Guest]

No, it's not.

 

Especially not after he turned down a more than fair offer already.

 

Right. They made a fair offer, Matt chose not to take it. So for him to get pissed at every dollar they spend on filling out the roster, well that is a Matt Forte problem not a Chicago Bears problem. What, the Bears are supposed to cower in fear and not carry on the business of filling out the roster out of fear of the wrath of Matt Forte?

 

 

I read the most the Bears offered was 12Mil guaranteed. Either way, 15Mil guaranteed may be nice but Lynch just got 17Mil guaranteed, Arian Foster got 20Mil guaranteed. Forte is better than Lynch. Can argue that Foster is better than Forte, but Forte has been good for longer and is basically the same age. Sure 15Mil is a "fair" offer, but it's not what the market has dictated for a RB of Forte's caliber.

 

And no, the Bears are not supposed to cower in fear (whatever that means). But it is stupid to spend money on a FA RB regardless of situation, even moreso when you just signed 3 FA RBs and they all have been failures. From Forte's point of view, it's not that the Bears are buying an insurance policy in case they can't work out a long term deal....it's the team signing a potential replacement and gaining leverage and putting their foot down in negotiations.

 

That being said, I'm not saying the Bears should pay him that money. I'm actually pretty much 50/50 on it. If they do pay him 20Mil guaranteed, fine he's earned it. If not, fine because he probably won't be worth it.

 

The Bears shouldn't toss out bad contracts just because other teams have.

 

As for that last part... pay for future production, not past.

[rawaction]

No, it's not.

 

Especially not after he turned down a more than fair offer already.

 

Right. They made a fair offer, Matt chose not to take it. So for him to get pissed at every dollar they spend on filling out the roster, well that is a Matt Forte problem not a Chicago Bears problem. What, the Bears are supposed to cower in fear and not carry on the business of filling out the roster out of fear of the wrath of Matt Forte?

 

 

I read the most the Bears offered was 12Mil guaranteed. Either way, 15Mil guaranteed may be nice but Lynch just got 17Mil guaranteed, Arian Foster got 20Mil guaranteed. Forte is better than Lynch. Can argue that Foster is better than Forte, but Forte has been good for longer and is basically the same age. Sure 15Mil is a "fair" offer, but it's not what the market has dictated for a RB of Forte's caliber.

 

And no, the Bears are not supposed to cower in fear (whatever that means). But it is stupid to spend money on a FA RB regardless of situation, even moreso when you just signed 3 FA RBs and they all have been failures. From Forte's point of view, it's not that the Bears are buying an insurance policy in case they can't work out a long term deal....it's the team signing a potential replacement and gaining leverage and putting their foot down in negotiations.

 

That being said, I'm not saying the Bears should pay him that money. I'm actually pretty much 50/50 on it. If they do pay him 20Mil guaranteed, fine he's earned it. If not, fine because he probably won't be worth it.

 

The Bears shouldn't toss out bad contracts just because other teams have.

 

As for that last part... pay for future production, not past.

 

How bad of a contract will it be though? With 18-20 Mil guaranteed, means you can still cut him easily after 3 years, at 28 years old, and not owe him another dime. It's not a prohibitive contract. A 28 year old RB can still be very productive. Forte has a lot of mileage on him, but there's no magic number he's about to hit where he becomes a bum. And again, I'm 50/50 on the idea. But I don't think you can just throw out it's a bad contract because RBs are a dime-a-dozen.

[rawaction]

Oh and FYI,

 

:39PMest:3/22/12:**UPDATED NFL RUMORS**Sources: Matt Forte is obviously unhappy with situation in Chicago -n- now 3 teams have emerged in "Exploratory" trade talks. Cleveland Browns have made contact with the Bears & are showing interest in the *Pro Bowl RB* (Forte), my source is saying interest is real high at this point. Also Patriots & Bucs have called about Matt today (Pats are willing to give up 2nd but not a 1st) - Bucs interest is not as much at this point, Tampa source is stating the call was just to see if Forte is available (Could get more involved later in the week) Bears are not asking for picks or players yet, but that could change before the week is over. In closing the Jets are not interested!

[UMFan83]

If there was any time to trade Forte, it would probably be now while his value is near his highest (knee injury and contract situation knock him down a bit). The Bears better get at least a 1st out of him.