Matt Forte down: Fantasy Impact
Matt Forte went down with a high ankle sprain in his week two contest against the Green Bay Packers and is expected to miss at least a month with the injury.
The Bears signed Michael Bush this off-season for exactly this eventuality and he will step right in to the starters job with the newly signed, former Bear Kahlil Bell backing him up.
Bush was quickly proved to be an astute off-season acquistion by a G.M who finally decided to surround Jay Cutler with the offensive weapons to help the Bears take the next step.
Fantasy Impact:
Michael Bush: Bush immediately steps in as an RB2 and has all of the same skills as Matt Forte. Bush who suffered an injury in college and fell to the fourth round had a first-round pedigree prior to the injury as has proved that he can handle a feature back workload during his stint in Oakland. Bush has averaged 92.5 yards per game as a starter with 70.5 coming on the ground and 22.4 coming through the air. Bush has significant upside as a lead rusher as he managed at least one 133 plus rushing yard game per season, with his career high being a 177 yard game in his rookie campaign.
Jay Cutler: Jay Cutler should not miss a step with this news as Michael Bush while not on the same talent level as former running mate Darren McFadden, is arguably on the same level as Matt Forte. Cutler will continue to be a high end QB2 with QB1 upside the rest of the way.
Brandon Marshall/Bears receivers: Forte and Bush have very similar skill sets and we do not expect any opposing defensive coordinators to take Bush lightly as he is already a proven commodity in the NFL. The Bears receiving corps get a marginal increase with the Forte injury.
Kahlil Bell: Bell’s familiarity with the Bears offense should allow him to see the field on his first game but he is nothing more than a Michael Bush handcuff. The Bears signed Bush because they were not comfortable with the talent downgrade between Forte and Bell if the former got injured, so he won’t get much unnecessary action.
