Matt Forté Matthew Garrett Forté ( born December 10 , 1985 ) is an American football running back for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League ( NFL ) . He played college football for Tulane University , and was drafted by the Bears in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft . Early years . He grew up in Slidell , Louisiana . He graduated from Slidell High School in 2004 . College career . Forte played NCAA Division I college football at Tulane University in New Orleans , Louisiana , a member of Conference USA . Forte lettered for four years and played for 3 while pursuing a degree in finance . His junior year was cut short when he suffered an injury in the game against Marshall University . His standout season was his senior year , coming off a knee injury , Forte set several Tulane school records , including rushing for 2 , 127 yards and 23 touchdowns . He had five 200 + yard rushing games and two 300 + yard games during the 2007 season . Forte was the only non - BCS athlete to be a semifinalist for both the Maxwell and Doak Walker Awards and to make the Walter Camp Player of the Year List , and one of just 3 players nationally to be named to all three lists . Senior Bowl . Forte garnered the most buzz at the 2008 Senior Bowl in Mobile , Alabama , and walked away with the Overall MVP award . He led with 59 yards rushing on 8 carries ; 4 receptions for 38 yards and a tackle on special teams . Professional career . 2008 . The Chicago Bears drafted Forte in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft as the forty - fourth overall selection . He was originally drafted to compete with Cedric Benson and for the team ' s starting running back position . However , Benson was released from the Bears after struggling with legal issues , leaving Forte to compete with Adrian Peterson and second - year running back Garrett Wolfe . Forte made his regular season debut on September 7 , 2008 , against the Indianapolis Colts . He carried the ball 23 times for 123 yards ( setting a franchise record for most yards gained in a running back debut ) and scored his first career touchdown on a then - career long 50 yard run en route to a 29 - 13 victory over the Colts . His efforts earned him Sunday Night Football ’ s “ Horse Trailer Player of the Game ” award . Forte became the first Chicago Bears running back to rush for over 1 , 000 yards in his rookie season since Anthony Thomas rushed for 1 , 183 yards in 2001 . He would finish with 1 , 238 yards rushing on the year as well as finishing with 1 , 715 yards from scrimmage ( Rushing and Receiving ) . This was good enough for third in the entire league and broke Hall of Famer Gale Sayers ' s former team record of 1 , 374 in 1965 . Forte led all rookie running backs in total yards and receptions . He received one vote for the National Football League Rookie of the Year Award , finishing behind Ryan Clady , Chris Johnson , and Matt Ryan . 2009 . Forte recorded 271 yards over the first four games of the 2009 season . He had his first big game of the season during Week 4 , against the Detroit Lions , during which he rushed for 121 yards , and scored his first touchdown of the season . 2010 . In 2010 , Forte was backed up by fellow running back Chester Taylor . In a preseason game against the Oakland Raiders , Forte ran for an 89 - yard touchdown , which would have been the longest run in Bears history if it had occurred during a regular season game . In Week 1 of the 2010 season , Matt Forte had two receiving touchdowns , one of 89 and one of 28 , the latter of which was the game - winner . Forte was named NFC offensive player of the week for Week 1 . In Week 5 against the Carolina Panthers , Forte had touchdown runs of 18 and 68 yards , the latter a career long , on the way to 166 total rushing yards on the day . Forte was named FedEx Ground Player of the Week for this week . In Week 11 , during the season ' s first Thursday Night Football game , playing on the road against the Miami Dolphins , Forte rushed for 97 yards on 25 carries and scored the game ' s only touchdown on a 2 - yard run in the 4th quarter as the Bears shutout the Dolphins , 16 - 0 . 2011 . On October 2 , 2011 , Forte rushed for a career high 205 yards and 1 touchdown in the Week 4 match up against the Carolina Panthers . Entering the team ' s week 8 bye , Forte has rushed for 672 yards and has 38 receptions for 419 yards , leading the Chicago Bears in both categories . He also leads the NFL in total yards . In a November 7 game against the Eagles , Forte , along with Herschel Walker , became the only players to have 700 rushing yards and 400 receiving yards in his first 4 seasons , and is the only player in NFL history to have at least 900 yards rushing and 400 yard receiving . Forte sprained his MCL in a loss to the Chiefs , and was eventually placed on injured reserve . However , he was placed on the NFC squad for the 2012 Pro Bowl for the first time in his career , making him the first Bear running back to be named to the Pro Bowl since Neal Anderson in 1991 . In the game , Forte had 2 carries for 6 yards , and 1 catch for 4 yards . 2012 . On March 2 , 2012 , Forte was given the franchise tag by the Bears that is worth $ 7 . 74 million . However , Forte has expressed his frustration and has refused to sign the tender , which eventually led to the Bears signing Michael Bush . Forte has since then considered a possibility of holding out until he gets a long term deal . Forte eventually skipped the team ' s organized team activity ( OTA ) workouts . Forte was eventually given a July 16 deadline to agree to a long - term deal . Forte agreed to a four - year , 32 million dollar deal . In week two against the Green Bay Packers , Forte sustained an ankle injury when he was tackled by Packers cornerback Charles Woodson , which the team considered a " high ankle sprain " , though the team later reported that it was not a high ankle sprain . Forte was later ruled out for the Bears - St . Louis Rams game . Forte eventually practiced on September 26 , and expects to play against the Dallas Cowboys . Personal life . Forte earned a degree in Finance from Tulane University in May 2009 . In his spare time , Forte enjoys playing video games , especially " " and " Halo 3 " for the Xbox 360 . Forte was also the runner up in the 2008 Rookie Madden Bowl , finishing second to future Bears teammate Devin Thomas . Forte followed his father who played for the Green Wave at Tulane University in the 1970s .