Matt Forte Agrees to Long Term Deal With the Bears

Running back Matt Forte has agreed to a long term deal with the Chicago Bears. Forte, 26, agreed to a 4 year deal after a long battle with the Bears management. If they had not agreed on a deal by 3pm, Forte would have been subject to a franchise tag and a one year paycheck of 7.74 million dollars.

According to the Chicago Tribune: Negotiations between Forte’s agent, Adisa Bakari, and the Bears were strenuous, to say the least. Talks went south last summer when Forte felt then-general manager Jerry Angelo did not keep his promise to reward him with a lucrative deal. Rather than hold out, Forte -- who played the final year of his rookie contract for a meager $600,000 -- took a business-as-usual approach toward the season. He was named to the Pro Bowl despite missing the final four games with a sprained medical collateral ligament in his right knee. Forte finished the ’11 campaign three yards shy of a third, 1,000-yard rushing effort in four seasons. He has compiled 4,233 rushing yards and 1,985 receiving yards in his young career. He became the first player in NFL history to reach 900 rushing yards and 400 receiving yards in each of his first four seasons. After missing the entire offseason, Forte is set to rejoin his team for the first training camp practice on July 26. The Bears signed veteran running back Michael Bush to a four-year, $12 million contract ($7 million guaranteed) as insurance -- a move Forte thought was disrespectful. Bush got the bulk of the first-team carries this offseason with Forte out of the mix with Kahlil Bell working alongside.

It’s good to finally see Forte getting the paycheck that he deserves, congrats!