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It's hard to find something in sports that has evolved quite like the NFL Draft over the last few decades. What was once an event that was strictly held in New York hotel conference centers turned into a spectacle made for a theater experience and is now a traveling road show occupying three days of entertainment while college football's biggest stars make the transition to the pro level.
Not only has the draft itself changed, but the way it's covered has as well. Mel Kiper Jr. isn't the only prominent draft analyst anymore, with numerous outlets having dedicated coverage all year round, including "The Beast," a comprehensive guide created by The Athletic's Dane Brugler. It's something former Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte took notice of, and he believes the extra coverage would have benefited him greatly when coming out of college back in 2008.
"If The Beast was around [back in 2008], some of the knocks that these pundits had on me, like Mike Mayock and other guys, I would have probably gone in the first round," Forte said in an exclusive interview with Bears Wire. With how extensive the draft scouting has become, Forte believes teams would have had more information on him coming from a smaller school at the time, and a guide like 'The Beast' would have shown that.
"I think what they would have said about me is they would have complimented my size aspect as a running back, of being on a taller, heavier, versatile aspect of a running back who cannot only run the ball," he said. "I had 2,000 yards my senior season but also had a lot of catches. Even on film, like running different routes that aren't just running back routes, like running receiver routes and things like that. So it would be more comprehensive in that aspect."
Forte is partnering with The Athletic to promote this year's launch of 'The Beast,' now available for download or print, and is free for the first time. It's the draft guide for any type of fan to be as prepared as possible for the 2026 NFL Draft. "Anybody can kind of dive into this draft guide," Forte said. "There's more and more extensive research that goes into the draft process and prospects as well. A lot of people tune into the combine and get a kind of snapshot of what a guy can do, and then you match the film to it, and they have this picture of what they can think will be their draft pick, what they need, or what they should fulfill. But 'The Beast' goes deeper than that. It's so extensive to where even front office executives are looking at this draft guide to be able to further evaluate players, because they're investing a lot into them."
"The Beast" is now available for download.
Nearly 20 years ago, the Bears invested in Forte by selecting him with the No. 44 overall pick in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft. Forte went on to become the second-best back in team history statistically speaking over the next eight seasons, rushing for 8,602 yards and scoring 64 total touchdowns, and was one of the best Bears draft picks of the 21st century. It felt Forte was destined to become a Bear, but it almost unraveled multiple times during the draft itself.
Forte revealed there were two instances that nearly led him to going elsewhere. One was due to another team's interest, and the other was reluctance by the Bears themselves.
"I was this close to being a New Orleans Saint," Forte said, thanks to a revelation by one of his former offensive coordinators during a pre-draft visit with New Orleans. "Aaron Kromer, who came to Chicago in 2013, was running the workout for the Saints at the time, doing the bag drills and everything. And when he came to Chicago, he said, 'Hey, man, you know, we were like, this close to drafting you in the first round,' but they decided to keep Deuce McAllister another year."
The Saints were picking at No. 40, four picks ahead of the Bears, and opted to select cornerback and Super Bowl hero Tracy Porter instead. Forte could have shared a backfield with Reggie Bush while catching passes from Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees. It was something Forte didn't find out until years later. "That was something that is not widely known because I was in the middle of my career when that was revealed to me. I didn't even know." Ironically, Forte and Porter became teammates in 2015 when the cornerback signed with the Bears.
Then there was the matter of the Bears' preferred options in 2008. Apparently, some members of the Bears front office were enamored with Forte, but one key member did not want to draft him. "In the Bears War Room, as they call it, there was a little bit of friction on who they wanted to draft at the running back position," Forte said. "And what I'm told is that GM Jerry Angelo did not want to draft me as a running back, but [offensive coordinator] Ron Turner, [head coach] Lovie Smith, and [running backs coach] Tim Spencer all did. And obviously, three versus one, they ended up winning the battle against him. And so all things being equal, it turned out great."
It's a bit ironic that Forte was Angelo's best offensive draft pick as Bears general manager, and he had to be talked into the selection by numerous members of the coaching staff. The former general manager had a knack for finding defensive talent, but offense alluded him.
As for the player Angelo wanted instead at the running back position, Forte has a good idea as to who the target was. "I think he wanted Rashard Mendenhall, but he went to the Steelers," Forte said. Mendenhall was picked at No. 23 overall, nine picks after the Bears selected Vanderbilt's Chris Williams in the first round. Though Mendenhall had a couple of solid years with the Steelers, Forte proved to be the better choice by far.
With just about two weeks to go until the 2026 NFL Draft kicks off, everyone has an opinion as to what the Bears need to do to bolster their roster during the first few rounds, and Forte is no different. "Address the defense, first and foremost," Forte said. "Defensively, I noticed in the playoffs, especially against the LA Rams, the offensive line of the Rams really kind of wore down [the Bears] and was establishing the run in a dominant way that allowed them to essentially win the game at the end. That was something that wasn't necessarily new."
The defensive line was a disappointment last year across the board, as they couldn't generate consistent pressure or stop the run. The Bears were a bottom-10 team in total sacks (35) and rush yards allowed per game (134.5) despite finishing with a league-best 33 takeaways. Forte wants the team to invest in the trenches to help make everyone's job easier on defense. "We do have some good high-paid players, like Montez Sweat and some of these other guys. But I think bolstering the defensive line never is a bad choice, whether it be drafting offense or the defensive line, because everything starts football in the trenches."
Players who could be available to help the Bears in such capacity include Clemson's Peter Woods and TJ Parker, Ohio State's Kayden McDonald, Auburn's Keldric Faulk, Miami's Akheem Messidor, UCF's Malachi Lawrence, and Illinois' Gabe Jacas. We'll see if they follow Forte's advice or go in a different direction early on.
It still remains to be seen who the next wave of rookies will be when the NFL Draft concludes for any team in the NFL, but no matter who winds up holding up a Bears hat and donning the navy and orange this fall, Forte has sage advice for the upcoming rookie class. "Be professional about everything," he said.
"This is not run-of-the-mill type of stuff. It's your actual profession. And so when you treat it that way, as I did, you treat it with much more care than just an entitlement of 'Yeah, I should be here.' You put a lot of hard work in, but treat it with the professionality that you would hold in any other job. This is the beginning of that legacy and impact that you want to leave."
Forte continued, stressing that players will need to step out of their comfort zone and do the little things to give their team a chance to win. "Be flexible in that even if you have early success, you're always going to have to reinvent yourself in a way to allow you to be successful and impactful, because [teams] are actively trying to shut down what you do best. You're going to have to reinvent yourself, work hard, and find different ways to win and be impactful. Maybe it's doing more than what your job requires you to do. You may have to do somebody else's job too."
That mentality kept Forte grounded coming into the league, and his evolution elevated his game as his career progressed. The two-time Pro Bowl running back always maintained a high level of professionalism, and the Bears would be fortunate to find rookies with that same mentality.
No Bears conversation in 2026 is complete without some thoughts about the team's stadium dilemma. The Bears are still weighing their options to build either in Arlington Heights or Hammond, Indiana, as Illinois politicians continue to debate the long-standing Mega Projects bill. If Forte had his way, though, he wouldn't let the franchise leave Soldier Field. "I'm old school, man," he said. "I got drafted here in 2008 and played all my games at Soldier Field, and being downtown Chicago, I just can't see it being anywhere else."
If the stadium has to be somewhere else, though, Forte isn't too keen on the Indiana site because he believes it would prevent a good portion of the fanbase from going to games. "It would be weird for them to be in Indiana, but it would also be sad, because there'd be a lot of people who probably would not make that trip due to the distance. But I'm also keeping in mind the players' ability to be successful there. I didn't experience this, but when I played with some of the guys who were there when they did the renovation on the Soldier Field stadium, they had to play in Champaign, and they were practicing at Halas. Even for home games, they had to take a short flight down there. It was not a good season, and every game felt like an away game because they were traveling like that."
Fortunately, the Bears likely won't have to worry about traveling to other stadiums to play games while the new one is being built, but Forte doesn't like how far Halas Hall would be from a new venue in Indiana. "They've done hundreds of millions of dollars in renovations on the facility. They now have camped there at home to go even further away. It just would be a hassle. I don't think guys would really want to drive through Chicago or around Chicago to get all the way into Indiana on a Saturday just to stay there for the game the next day."
Unfortunately for Forte, it seems the ship has sailed on any possible new stadium on the lakefront. Unfortunately for everyone else, a resolution is still a few weeks away at a minimum. But with the draft approaching, fans can keep their attention on the upcoming rookie class instead. Perhaps with their advanced scouting, the Bears will find a player who flies under the radar and turns out to be a critical piece of their team for the better part of a decade. Just like Forte did nearly two decades ago.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Matt Forte talks Bears draft, rookie revelations, 'The Beast', & more
Continue reading...
Not only has the draft itself changed, but the way it's covered has as well. Mel Kiper Jr. isn't the only prominent draft analyst anymore, with numerous outlets having dedicated coverage all year round, including "The Beast," a comprehensive guide created by The Athletic's Dane Brugler. It's something former Chicago Bears running back Matt Forte took notice of, and he believes the extra coverage would have benefited him greatly when coming out of college back in 2008.
"If The Beast was around [back in 2008], some of the knocks that these pundits had on me, like Mike Mayock and other guys, I would have probably gone in the first round," Forte said in an exclusive interview with Bears Wire. With how extensive the draft scouting has become, Forte believes teams would have had more information on him coming from a smaller school at the time, and a guide like 'The Beast' would have shown that.
"I think what they would have said about me is they would have complimented my size aspect as a running back, of being on a taller, heavier, versatile aspect of a running back who cannot only run the ball," he said. "I had 2,000 yards my senior season but also had a lot of catches. Even on film, like running different routes that aren't just running back routes, like running receiver routes and things like that. So it would be more comprehensive in that aspect."
Forte is partnering with The Athletic to promote this year's launch of 'The Beast,' now available for download or print, and is free for the first time. It's the draft guide for any type of fan to be as prepared as possible for the 2026 NFL Draft. "Anybody can kind of dive into this draft guide," Forte said. "There's more and more extensive research that goes into the draft process and prospects as well. A lot of people tune into the combine and get a kind of snapshot of what a guy can do, and then you match the film to it, and they have this picture of what they can think will be their draft pick, what they need, or what they should fulfill. But 'The Beast' goes deeper than that. It's so extensive to where even front office executives are looking at this draft guide to be able to further evaluate players, because they're investing a lot into them."
"The Beast" is now available for download.
Draft day uncertainty
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Nearly 20 years ago, the Bears invested in Forte by selecting him with the No. 44 overall pick in the second round of the 2008 NFL Draft. Forte went on to become the second-best back in team history statistically speaking over the next eight seasons, rushing for 8,602 yards and scoring 64 total touchdowns, and was one of the best Bears draft picks of the 21st century. It felt Forte was destined to become a Bear, but it almost unraveled multiple times during the draft itself.
Forte revealed there were two instances that nearly led him to going elsewhere. One was due to another team's interest, and the other was reluctance by the Bears themselves.
"I was this close to being a New Orleans Saint," Forte said, thanks to a revelation by one of his former offensive coordinators during a pre-draft visit with New Orleans. "Aaron Kromer, who came to Chicago in 2013, was running the workout for the Saints at the time, doing the bag drills and everything. And when he came to Chicago, he said, 'Hey, man, you know, we were like, this close to drafting you in the first round,' but they decided to keep Deuce McAllister another year."
The Saints were picking at No. 40, four picks ahead of the Bears, and opted to select cornerback and Super Bowl hero Tracy Porter instead. Forte could have shared a backfield with Reggie Bush while catching passes from Hall of Fame quarterback Drew Brees. It was something Forte didn't find out until years later. "That was something that is not widely known because I was in the middle of my career when that was revealed to me. I didn't even know." Ironically, Forte and Porter became teammates in 2015 when the cornerback signed with the Bears.
Then there was the matter of the Bears' preferred options in 2008. Apparently, some members of the Bears front office were enamored with Forte, but one key member did not want to draft him. "In the Bears War Room, as they call it, there was a little bit of friction on who they wanted to draft at the running back position," Forte said. "And what I'm told is that GM Jerry Angelo did not want to draft me as a running back, but [offensive coordinator] Ron Turner, [head coach] Lovie Smith, and [running backs coach] Tim Spencer all did. And obviously, three versus one, they ended up winning the battle against him. And so all things being equal, it turned out great."
It's a bit ironic that Forte was Angelo's best offensive draft pick as Bears general manager, and he had to be talked into the selection by numerous members of the coaching staff. The former general manager had a knack for finding defensive talent, but offense alluded him.
As for the player Angelo wanted instead at the running back position, Forte has a good idea as to who the target was. "I think he wanted Rashard Mendenhall, but he went to the Steelers," Forte said. Mendenhall was picked at No. 23 overall, nine picks after the Bears selected Vanderbilt's Chris Williams in the first round. Though Mendenhall had a couple of solid years with the Steelers, Forte proved to be the better choice by far.
2026 Bears draft needs
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With just about two weeks to go until the 2026 NFL Draft kicks off, everyone has an opinion as to what the Bears need to do to bolster their roster during the first few rounds, and Forte is no different. "Address the defense, first and foremost," Forte said. "Defensively, I noticed in the playoffs, especially against the LA Rams, the offensive line of the Rams really kind of wore down [the Bears] and was establishing the run in a dominant way that allowed them to essentially win the game at the end. That was something that wasn't necessarily new."
The defensive line was a disappointment last year across the board, as they couldn't generate consistent pressure or stop the run. The Bears were a bottom-10 team in total sacks (35) and rush yards allowed per game (134.5) despite finishing with a league-best 33 takeaways. Forte wants the team to invest in the trenches to help make everyone's job easier on defense. "We do have some good high-paid players, like Montez Sweat and some of these other guys. But I think bolstering the defensive line never is a bad choice, whether it be drafting offense or the defensive line, because everything starts football in the trenches."
Players who could be available to help the Bears in such capacity include Clemson's Peter Woods and TJ Parker, Ohio State's Kayden McDonald, Auburn's Keldric Faulk, Miami's Akheem Messidor, UCF's Malachi Lawrence, and Illinois' Gabe Jacas. We'll see if they follow Forte's advice or go in a different direction early on.
Advice for the next wave of Bears players
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It still remains to be seen who the next wave of rookies will be when the NFL Draft concludes for any team in the NFL, but no matter who winds up holding up a Bears hat and donning the navy and orange this fall, Forte has sage advice for the upcoming rookie class. "Be professional about everything," he said.
"This is not run-of-the-mill type of stuff. It's your actual profession. And so when you treat it that way, as I did, you treat it with much more care than just an entitlement of 'Yeah, I should be here.' You put a lot of hard work in, but treat it with the professionality that you would hold in any other job. This is the beginning of that legacy and impact that you want to leave."
Forte continued, stressing that players will need to step out of their comfort zone and do the little things to give their team a chance to win. "Be flexible in that even if you have early success, you're always going to have to reinvent yourself in a way to allow you to be successful and impactful, because [teams] are actively trying to shut down what you do best. You're going to have to reinvent yourself, work hard, and find different ways to win and be impactful. Maybe it's doing more than what your job requires you to do. You may have to do somebody else's job too."
That mentality kept Forte grounded coming into the league, and his evolution elevated his game as his career progressed. The two-time Pro Bowl running back always maintained a high level of professionalism, and the Bears would be fortunate to find rookies with that same mentality.
New stadium thoughts
You must be registered for see images
No Bears conversation in 2026 is complete without some thoughts about the team's stadium dilemma. The Bears are still weighing their options to build either in Arlington Heights or Hammond, Indiana, as Illinois politicians continue to debate the long-standing Mega Projects bill. If Forte had his way, though, he wouldn't let the franchise leave Soldier Field. "I'm old school, man," he said. "I got drafted here in 2008 and played all my games at Soldier Field, and being downtown Chicago, I just can't see it being anywhere else."
If the stadium has to be somewhere else, though, Forte isn't too keen on the Indiana site because he believes it would prevent a good portion of the fanbase from going to games. "It would be weird for them to be in Indiana, but it would also be sad, because there'd be a lot of people who probably would not make that trip due to the distance. But I'm also keeping in mind the players' ability to be successful there. I didn't experience this, but when I played with some of the guys who were there when they did the renovation on the Soldier Field stadium, they had to play in Champaign, and they were practicing at Halas. Even for home games, they had to take a short flight down there. It was not a good season, and every game felt like an away game because they were traveling like that."
Fortunately, the Bears likely won't have to worry about traveling to other stadiums to play games while the new one is being built, but Forte doesn't like how far Halas Hall would be from a new venue in Indiana. "They've done hundreds of millions of dollars in renovations on the facility. They now have camped there at home to go even further away. It just would be a hassle. I don't think guys would really want to drive through Chicago or around Chicago to get all the way into Indiana on a Saturday just to stay there for the game the next day."
Unfortunately for Forte, it seems the ship has sailed on any possible new stadium on the lakefront. Unfortunately for everyone else, a resolution is still a few weeks away at a minimum. But with the draft approaching, fans can keep their attention on the upcoming rookie class instead. Perhaps with their advanced scouting, the Bears will find a player who flies under the radar and turns out to be a critical piece of their team for the better part of a decade. Just like Forte did nearly two decades ago.
This article originally appeared on Bears Wire: Matt Forte talks Bears draft, rookie revelations, 'The Beast', & more
Continue reading...
