Bears All-Quarter Century Team: Running backs

Twenty-five years of Chicago Bears football are in the books since the turn of the century. Since the calendar turned over to 2000, the Bears have seen some success, but also plenty of woeful stretches. Early on, Chicago became a defensive force, claiming four division titles and reaching only their second Super Bowl in franchise history from 2000 to 2010. Since then, however, a 14-year playoff victory drought that is still ongoing and a one-sided fight with their rival Green Bay Packers have taken the spotlight.

For all the ups and downs the Bears have seen, however, they had plenty of talent over the years across offense and defense. Multiple former Bears players are already in the Hall of Fame, while many more provided years of incredible play in the navy and orange.

Here at Bears Wire, we’re celebrating the best Bears players at each position over the last 25 years. We’re going position by position to name the Bears’ All-Quarter Century Team for those who played from 2000 through 2024. Next up are running backs, a position where Chicago has notably found some gems from the NFL draft to free agency.

Matt Forte

2008 – 2015
8,602 rushing yards, 4.2 yards per carry, 45 touchdowns; 4,116 receiving yards, 10 touchdowns

The Bears have a long list of legendary running backs — led by Hall of Famers Walter Payton and Gale Sayers — and Matt Forte will still go down as one of the franchise’s best. Forte’s name is well represented in the Bears’ record books — although it’s hard to surpass the legendary Payton — as he spent eight of 10 seasons in Chicago. Forte ranks second in team history with 8,602 rushing yards, 12,718 net yards, 487 receptions, 24 100-yard rushing games and five 1,000-yard rushing seasons — trailing only Payton. He’s also a two-time Pro Bowler (2011, 2013), was named to the Pro Football Writers of America’s All-Rookie Team (2008) and landed on the 100 greatest Bears of All-Time list (34th). At the time, Forte broke the Bears’ single-season rookie rushing record in 2008 with 1,238 yards, which was later broken by Jordan Howard (also on this list) in 2016.

While Forte didn’t possess breakaway speed, he was a true dual-threat weapon for the Bears, thriving both as a rusher and a receiver. In fact, he’s one of just three players to record 1,000 rushing yards and 1,000 receiving yards in a single season in NFL history. Forte was also the first player in NFL history with 900 rushing yards and 400 receiving yards in each of his first four seasons. While he wasn’t considered a true bonafide star running back, there was no player more important to his team’s offense than Forte. So it was only fitting that, even after two seasons with the New York Jets, Forte retired a Bear.

Thomas Jones

2004-06
3,493 rushing yards, 4.1 yards per carry, 22 touchdowns; 724 receiving yards

While Thomas Jones was only in Chicago for three seasons, he made a lasting impression and proved to be one of the franchise’s better free-agent signings at the time. Jones amassed nearly 3,500 rushing yards in just three seasons, including back-to-back years where he eclipsed 1,200 rushing yards — the first to accomplish the feat since Payton in 1985-86. Jones had to share the backfield with Cedric Benson, who was drafted fourth overall in 2005. But, thanks to Benson’s rookie holdout, Jones proceeded to have his second-best ever statistical season with 1,335 rushing yards and nine touchdowns.

Jones played an integral role in the success of Chicago’s offense during their Super Bowl run in 2006, where he rushed for 1,210 rushing yards and six touchdowns. During the 2006 postseason, Jones was the second-leading rusher with 301 yards, including 5.5 yards per carry, and four touchdowns in three games. Ultimately, the Bears traded Jones to the Jets in 2007, as they opted to ride with Benson, which wound up being the wrong decision (although Benson went on to be productive with the Cincinnati Bengals). But despite his short stint, Jones is still remembered as yet another productive and impactful running back in Chicago.

Jordan Howard

2016-18
3,370 rushing yards, 4.3 yards per carry, 24 touchdowns; 568 receiving yards, 1 touchdown

The Bears found a diamond in the rough with Jordan Howard, who was selected in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft. Like Jones, he spent just three seasons in Chicago before being traded away, but he proved to be a vital contributor on offense during his short stint. Howard rushed for 3,370 yards, which ranks seventh on the Bears’ all-time rushing list, and 24 touchdowns averaging 4.3 yards per carry. Howard’s first two seasons in Chicago were special, where he set several records along the way. Howard set a Bears rookie rushing record with 1,313 yards, which also ranked second in the NFL in 2016. He was also the team’s first rookie running back selected to the Pro Bowl since Gale Sayers in 1965.

Howard followed up his impressive rookie season with 1,122 rushing yards and a career-high nine touchdowns, becoming the first Bears running back in history to rush for 1,000 yards in each of his first two NFL seasons. He also made history surpassing Hall of Famers Payton (26) and Sayers (28) as the fastest Bears player to eclipse 2,000 rushing yards in just 24 games. While Howard had a promising start to his Bears career, he didn’t fit into head coach Matt Nagy’s offensive scheme, which led to Chicago trading Howard to the Philadelphia Eagles for a 2020 sixth-round pick. The Bears went on to draft David Montgomery in the third round just a month later, and he just so happened to make our list as an honorable mention.

Honorable mention: David Montgomery

FB Jason McKie

2003-09
84 rushing yards, 2.9 yards per carry, 3 touchdowns; 357 receiving yards, 3 touchdowns

Every running back’s best friend is their fullback, and Jason McKie is easily the best fullback the Bears have had this century so far. McKie spent seven seasons with Chicago (2003-09), where he proved to be an integral part to the Bears’ rushing attack. In 2006, McKie became the full-time starter at fullback after replacing Bryan Johnson, who landed on injured reserve, and in turn helped Thomas Jones rush for 1,210 yards during Chicago’s Super Bowl run. Before the end of the season, McKie earned a well-deserved five-year contract extension.

McKie also played a key role in Matt Forte’s record-breaking rookie season in 2008, where Forte had a franchise-best 1,238 rushing yards, which was later broken by Jordan Howard in 2016. During his Bears tenure, McKie thrived as a blocker and was even utilized in goal-line situations. Ultimately, McKie was released by Chicago in March 2010, following the hiring of offensive coordinator Mike Martz.