Before the NFL free agency period even opened at 4pm ET on Wednesday, Matt Forte had decided where he wanted to play football in 2016.
Matt Forte is signing with the NY Jets, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 9, 2016
A bittersweet tweet from Adam Schefter for all Chicago Bears fans. While it was a relief to see Forte not sign with the Green Bay Packers, it’s tough to see (although we all knew it was coming) him officially set to play elsewhere.
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One has to question what Forte’s motivations were to go to the New York Jets. Forte has said certain things all along. One, he wanted to go to a Super Bowl contender and two, he wanted to be a key part of an offense, but he wasn’t worried about being a workhorse.
This isn’t to say the Jets don’t have a good football team. They absolutely do and should contend for a playoff spot in 2016. However, for a man that said he was interested in trying to win a Super Bowl, the Jets shouldn’t have been his first choice. The Packers were reportedly very interested in Forte, and let’s be honest, as much as no Bears’ fan wants to see Forte with the Packers, if he wanted to try and win a championship, he has a better chance in Green Bay. There was also some early chatter that the New England Patriots would have some interest in Forte, and obviously, the Patriots are much more of a Super Bowl contender than the Jets.
The Jets were suddenly without Chris Ivory and Bilal Powell and Forte apparently saw it as an opportunity to be featured heavily in an offense. Brandon Marshall certainly had some effort in recruiting him to go to the Big Apple, but with the Jets’ QB situation completely up in the air, why would Forte rush to sign with the Jets? If Ryan Fitzpatrick leaves via free agency, the Jets are going to be a complete mess having to go back to Geno Smith or give the keys to Bryce Petty.
Forte is free to sign with whatever team he chooses and if he feels that the Jets are the best fit for him based on his available options, than based on Forte’s history of being honest and classy, Bears’ fans should believe him. It just seems that Forte may have rushed into a decision instead of being a little more patient in free agency and potentially seeing if a better option would be available to him.
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Forte said he desired to feel wanted and the Jets certainly did just that. But can Forte and the Jets win a Super Bowl in the next few seasons? That seems highly doubtful.
Bill Zimmerman is an editor and featured writer for FanSided‘s BearGogglesOn. Like his Facebook page or follow him on Twitter for more news and interaction.