Forte and Faulk: Similarities Include Destiny for the Hall of Fame

Right after the lengthy lockout had ended, I was reading some NFC previews and one writer from ESPN who’s name unfortunately I can’t remember, stated that this would be the year Matt Forte got closer to the Adrian Peterson ranks, great call.

Instead of comparing players that are currently playing, I’ll compare Forte to a newly inducted Hall Of Famer. I decided to take a look at some stats, take in the atmosphere between the two, and as cliche as it sounds I’ve looked at “what they have become”. In case you were wondering, that Hall Of Famer is, former Colt and Ram, Marshall Faulk.

While Faulk was a great running back in his own right, normally the attribute you associate with a “Faulk” label is the ability of a running back to catch the ball out of the backfield. The other main attribute that Faulk brought with his game was his ability to block defenders as well as he ran and caught the football.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock the entire 2011 NFL season, you would know that one of the most talked about situations in the NFL is Forte’s contract situation. As proved this year in the best way he can, Forte is being underpaid at about $600,000 for this year. Ironically enough, when Faulk was traded to St. Louis “contract and other personal reasons” was the excuse given by the Colts when asked why they traded Faulk.

Following in the steps of Faulk during a controversial situation, Forte has kept himself fairly quiet when questions arise on his contract. “We can worry about that later, right now I’m focused on helping my team in the best way I can”-Matt Forte.

Now as far as performance on the field. Faulk went from very talented young player to one of the leaders on “The Greatest Show on Turf”, meanwhile Forte has gone from “running back from Tulane” to 46% of the Bears offense which is leading them to some great victories. Forte also led the Bears in both receiving and rushing last season, he’s on the pace to do it again this year as well.

You’ll notice not many numbers have been installed because quite frankly, stats only matter when it comes to the Hall Of Fame and most recently, Fantasy Football (which Forte has also been great in).  In a sports world controlled by the internet where stats and controversy rule all, it would only make sense to start whispering Matt Forte’s name together with the Hall Of Fame.

While a Super Bowl ring would only make this argument more stronger, there’s much to be said about a single player who has truly done it all for his team and led them to second place in the division. While taking down Aaron Rodgers and the perfect Packers seems to be a tough task, it’s nothing that Forte & Co will be afraid of.

Matt Forte and Marshall Faulk, both led to great success by Mike Martz (remember when Bear fans wanted him gone?), have each shared their moments of success. The humble yet powerful Forte lets his stats speak for himself, his play do the contract negotiations, and if he keeps it up, his Super Bowl ring will only reassure the voters, when it comes to have his face in Canton, Ohio, in the Pro Football Hall Of Fame. Of course, Forte probably wouldn’t have much to say anyways, he’s quiet just like Marshall was.