24-year old Matt Forte had a tough 2nd year after an outstanding rookie year so they need him to bounce back in 2010.  Forte played in 16 games (all starts) for the Bears last season and he carried the ball 258 times for 929 yards (3.6 ypc) with 4 TD runs.  He has also caught 57 passes for 471 yards (8.3 avg) without a TD last year.  Forte has now played in 32 games (all starts) for the Bears in which he has carried the ball 574 times for 2,167 yards (3.8 ypc) with 12 TD runs.  He has also caught 120 passes for 948 yards (7.9 avg) with 4 TD grabs with the Bears.  Forte will need to step up in 2010 or he’s going to see less touches.

30-year old Chester Taylor will likely back up Forte in 2010 but he could battle him for the #1 job.  Taylor played in 16 games (0 starts) for the Vikings last season in which he carried the ball 94 times for 338 yards (3.6 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He also caught 44 passes for 389 yards (8.8 avg) with 1 TD grab last season.  Taylor has now played in 123 games (32 starts) in his NFL career and he has carried the ball 1,028 times for 4,396 yards (4.3 ypc) with 22 TD runs.  He has also caught 265 passes for 2,094 yards (7.9 avg) with 6 TD grabs in his career.  Taylor, like Forte, seems to be a good fit in Mike Martz’ offense because they are both solid receivers out of the backfield.

23-year old Khalil Bell came out of nowhere last season to produce for the Bears when given a shot.  Bell played in 7 games (0 starts) for the Bears last season and he carried the ball 40 times for 220 yards (5.5 ypc) without a TD run.  He also caught 1 pass for 4 yards last season.  Bell was a undrafted rookie last season who showed he deserves some P.T. in 2010.

25-year old Garrett Wolfe is back for more in 2010.  He played in 8 games (0 starts) for the Bears last season in which he carried the ball 22 times for 120 yards (5.5 ypc) with 1 TD run.  Wolfe also caught 2 passes for 12 yards (6.0 avg) last year.  Wolfe has now played in 34 games (0 starts) in his three years with the Bears and he has carried the ball 68 times for 274 yards (4.0 ypc) with 1 TD run.  He has also caught 11 passes for 129 yards (11.7 avg) with the Bears. 

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BEARS RBs in 2010:  B-

27-year old Jay Cutler was not the savior the Bears thought he would be last season.  Cutler played in all 16 games for the Bears last season and he completed 336 of 555 passes (60.5%) for 3,666 yards with 27 TD passes and 26 INTs (76.8 QB Rating).  Cutler also carried the ball 40 times for 173 yards (4.3 ypc) with 1 TD run last season.  Cutler has now played in 53 games in his NFL career and he has completed 1,098 of 1,775 passes (61.9%) for 12,690 yards with 81 TD passes and 63 INTs (83.8 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 153 times for 596 yards (3.9 ypc) with 4 TD runs in his career.  Cutler now has a 24-29 (45.3%) record in the NFL as a starting QB.  Cutler has a strong arm but he often forces the ball when he shouldn’t resulting in pickoffs.  Cutler has more physical tools than any QB Mike Martz has coached to date so we’ll see if he can bring out the best in him.

The Bears might still be looking for a veteran backup QB but if they don’t find one 24-year old Caleb Hanie will likely be the #2 QB again in 2010.  Hanie played in 3 games for the Bears last season and he completed 3 of 7 passes (42.9%) for 11 yards with 0 TD passes and 1 INT (10.7 QB Rating).  Hanie has no exceptional skills so he wouldn’t likely do too well if he were forced into action.

Rookie 6th round pick Dan LeFevour was a outstanding QB at Central Michigan but he will be hard pressed to beat out Hanie for the #2 QB job for 2010.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BEARS QBs in 2010:  B