Nov. 13--Bears running back Matt Forte is listed as questionable on the injury report for Sunday's game against the St. Louis Rams. But it seems highly unlikely that Forte will return from a sprained medial collateral ligament in time to help the Bears this weekend at the Edward Jones Dome.
The 29-year-old running back admitted Friday that he has seen drastic improvement in his recovery this week but still has a lot to consider before resuming full-speed, full-contact action.
Forte suffered his injury in the second half of the Bears' 23-20 home loss to the Minnesota Vikings two weeks ago. It's the same injury he suffered in 2011, a setback that kept him out of the Bears' final four games.
Now, down the stretch of a contract year, Forte asserted Friday that he must prioritize his long-term future even as he makes a determined push to return to the lineup.
"That's (a factor), if not the most important factor -- the future," Forte said. "Because if you go out there for one game and then ruin the rest of your season and maybe your career, then that's a big factor. There's a lot of football left to be played. So you don't want to chance it for one game. That's a lot of it."
Forte also indicated that the turf surface in St. Louis isn't exactly an ideal stage on which to test the knee.
Here are a handful of other highlights from Forte's Friday exchange with reporters.
On the decision this weekend to play or not:
"It's a fine line, because if you're not fully healed and you go out there, you might injure it worse or something else. So it's hard to tell."
On whether Jeremy Langford's production adds any motivation to his push to return:
"Motivating? I just worry about myself, man, and how I play out there. He did a good job. That's obviously why he's in the NFL. It's for a reason, because he has talent. He did a good job out there."
On whether he has to be concerned about aggravating his knee injury:
"Yeah, that's always a factor. If you aren't fully healed up and you go out there, then you can take one step forward and get injured and take five steps backwards. That's obviously not good to come back for one game and then be out for five or six. So you obviously don't want to do something like that."
On things he can do on the side to aid his healing process:
"I just do the same stuff I've always [done]. Physical therapy. Dry needling. Massage. And obviously lifting is a big part of an MCL injury. ... But when you feel like you're able to run, running is good. Because by doing those movements that you're going to do out there in a game it kind of strengthens (the knee) to be able to do that. As far as side-to-side agility and all that stuff, you have to take it a little easier than going straight ahead because that's what the MCL does. It kind of stabilizes the knee. So you have to take time with that."
On how much improvement he's experienced this week:
"From last week? A ton of improvement. Probably, I don't know, like 80 percent more improvement. Because I wasn't running or anything last week and it was really inflamed. I still have fluid in my knee and stuff like that. But it takes time for that to get out. So I'm just taking it day by day really to see where I get from there."
On what he's seen in Langford over the past six months:
"He's like a sponge. He likes to absorb all the information he can get. And obviously with me being in the room, he's just taking that advice from me and taking pointers whenever you give them. He's been real receptive of that. Some guys can come in and be kind of arrogant. He's been the opposite of that. He's done a good job in that part."
On why he has felt compelled to mentor the rookie running back:
"I think it comes full circle. If I were a rookie, I would want somebody to give me that advice and take me under their wing and do something like that. So I'm doing my part as a veteran to help somebody become better. He's my teammate in the end. In the grand scheme of things and we want to win the game. So it doesn't matter who's in there."
dwiederer@tribpub.com
