Forte established himself as a dual-threat running back capable of earning yards as a rusher and receiver.

[5] Sources: Forte played NCAA Division I college football at Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana, a member of Conference USA.

[14] Overall, he had 169 carries for 655 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns to go along with 23 receptions for 163 yards and one receiving touchdown during Tulane's tumultuous 2–9 season, which saw the Green Wave forced to play all of their games on the road and at neutral sites due to Hurricane Katrina.

He got a majority of the carries, sharing the bulk of the total rushing attack with Ray Boudreaux and Ade Tuyo after going down to injury in early November.

He scored six total touchdowns in the span, which had victories over Rice and Army but losses to UTEP and Auburn.

[38][39] Forte garnered the most attention at the 2008 Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, and walked away with the Overall MVP award.

[43] He was originally drafted to compete with Cedric Benson for the team's starting running back position.

However, Benson was released from the Bears after legal complications, and Forte out-competed Adrian Peterson and second-year running back Garrett Wolfe and started all 16 games.

[44] In the regular season debut on September 7, 2008, against the Indianapolis Colts, he carried the ball 23 times for 123 yards (setting a franchise record for most debut rushing yards) and scored his first career touchdown on a 50-yard run en route to a 29–13 victory over the Colts.

His 1,715 yards from scrimmage was third in the NFL, and broke Hall of Famer Gale Sayers's team record of 1,374 in 1965.

[56][57] Despite the decrease in production, Forte dominated the carries in the Bears' backfield for the 2009 season, recording over 200 more attempts than Kahlil Bell.

[67] In the next round, he became the only player in Bears post-season history with at least ten receptions in the 21–14 loss to the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship.

[85][86] Forte then held out for a long-term contract,[87] skipping the organized team activity (OTA) workouts,[88] before finally agreeing to a four-year, $32 million deal.

[96][97][98] Two weeks later, against the New Orleans Saints, Forte passed Rick Casares for third in the all-time leading rusher list with 5,702 career yards, behind Walter Payton and Neal Anderson.

[101][102] On November 24, 2013, Forte passed Neal Anderson for the second most career rushing yards in Bears franchise history.

[104] In the Week 17 loss to Green Bay, Forte recorded his 20th 100-yard rushing game, tying Gale Sayers for the second-most in Bears history.

[105] Forte ended the 2013 season with a career-high nine rushing touchdowns along with 1,933 total yards from scrimmage, fifth-most in team history and the second-most behind Payton.

[108][109] Following the regular season's conclusion, Forte was one of three finalists for the FedEx Ground Player of the Year Award,[110] but finished runner-up to LeSean McCoy and Jamaal Charles.

[119] In Week 1, Forte started with a season-best 141 rushing yards on 24 carries and a touchdown against Green Bay, his best since the 2011 season.

[120] His production was sub-par even before a knee injury at the hands of Minnesota's Harrison Smith sidelined him for three games.

[127] The following week, he finished a 37–31 victory over the Buffalo Bills with 30 carries for 100 yards and tied a career-high with three rushing touchdowns.

[130] The 5–11 Jets frequently fell behind early in games, and Forte split rushing duties with Bilal Powell.

[132][133] Forte had a career-low 152 yards from scrimmage in his first three games before a toe injury sidelined him for two weeks, allowing Bilal Powell to emerge as a legitimate replacement.

[134] He did not have a game with 10 rushing attempts until Week 9, when he scored his first two touchdowns of the season in a 34–21 victory over the Buffalo Bills on Thursday Night Football.

[139][140] The Chicago Bears honored both Forte and former teammate Devin Hester on April 23 during a press conference at Halas Hall.

"[141] Forte later joined NBC Sports Chicago's Football Aftershow as an analyst alongside Laurence Holmes and former teammates Alex Brown, Lance Briggs, and Olin Kreutz.