"The playoffs are a reach for them right now, unless something drastic happens," said former Bears coach Mike Ditka, now an ESPN analyst.
A MRI has revealed that Forte has a Grade 2 MCL sprain in his right knee, which he injured in the first quarter of Sunday's 10-3 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Based on the grade, it's expected to keep Forte out for up to six weeks. With four games left in the regular season the injury comes with the strong possibility of Forte missing all of them.
Back in the 2009 season, Forte also battled a MCL sprain but was able to play through it for an entire 16-game schedule. That season he finished with 929 rushing yards and averaged a career-low 3.6 yards per carry.
This season, Forte is three yards shy of 1,000 yards rushing while averaging a whopping 4.9 yards per carry. With 1,487 yards from scrimmage, Forte is first in the NFL, ahead of the Baltimore Ravens' Ray Rice, Houston Texans' Arian Foster and Philadelphia Eagles' LeSean McCoy. That comprises 38 percent of the Bears' total offensive yardage.
So as much as the Bears miss Cutler, they will miss Forte more. Consider the next two opponents, the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks. Each has been vulnerable to versatile all-purpose backs such as Forte.
"He's been nightmare matchup for defenses," Ditka said of Forte. "Without him and Cutler, the Bears have lost the two viable options of their offense. It leaves them looking for a fix and takes them out of their normal pattern. It can start making you have a lack of confidence as a team."
A knee injury leaves Matt Forte low and has the Bears on life support. (AP Photo)
It was Chicago's game plan, with Cutler out, to lean heavily on their running game and defense to win the games. Save for a first half-ending Hail Mary touchdown by the Chiefs, the Bears couldn't have asked their defense to play much better.
After Forte left the game just nine minutes in, feeling the effects of a hit by Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson, the Bears got little from their backup backs. With Forte getting five carries for 12 yards, reserves Marion Barber and Kahlil Bell managed only 78 yards on 18 carries (4.3 yards per carry). More important, however, was the fact that neither Barber nor Bell factored in the passing game, where Forte has a team-high 52 receptions.
For a young, unproven quarterback such as Caleb Hanie, that takes away a critical security blanket. Making matters worse, is that the Bears' most reliable route-running wide receiver, Earl Bennett, has been held to one catch for just five yards in each of the past two games.
Few teams can recover from losing players such as Cutler and Forte, and it's especially a long shot for the Bears, who are stuck with big drop-offs at their positions.
Coach Lovie Smith has been clinging to the hopes Cutler may be able to return in time to save to their season, and expressed a similar sentiment regarding Forte's status in his Monday news conference.
Based on his diagnosis, Forte has a much better shot of playing again this season than Cutler does with a broken thumb, but that brings up a touchy subject. The Bears must be careful of rushing Forte back, and risking his long-term health, if by the time he comes back, there's little chance of making the postseason.
Forte, meanwhile, as a free agent to be in 2012, has been frustrated that Bears' officials have yet to reward him with a deserving long-term contract. A knee injury for a running back, even one that's deemed as not serious, isn't something with which to be messed. In little more than two weeks, Chicago has gone from potential NFC challenger to scrambling to replace its most irreplaceable players. Although the pressure is on to win now, the Bears must be careful how they fight their current fate so they don't jeopardize their future.