By: Jake Rajala

Matt Forte, also unequivocally known as one of the most underrated running backs in NFL history, hung up his cleats in the 2018 off-season. Forte left behind a rampage of 14,468 all-purpose yards and 75 total touchdowns in his 10-year career. Furthermore, he garnered numerous Pro Bowl honors. It’s clear that he was a gifted runner and pass-catcher for his beloved Bears fan base between 2008 & 2015 (prior to playing two seasons with the New York Jets). With that said, the mighty question is: Is Forte a future Hall of Famer?

Forte was breathtaking to watch, a Madden favorite, and a savior to the Bears fan-base. However, I don’t believe he had a Hall of Fame-worthy career. His consistent top-end numbers still don’t justify his case to be a Hall of Famer.

Forte only garnered two Pro Bowl honors, zero All-Pro nods, and of course: zero Super Bowl rings in his career. He wasn’t near the caliber-RB that a distant HOF RB in Chris Johnson was. Johnson was able to be at the peak of the mountain top with his OPOY winning season (which also obviously resulted in first-team All-Pro, too). Johnson also had a few Pro Bowl trips in his career.

Bears fans may want to sacrifice me for not placing Forte in the football heaven category, but he simply didn’t have a CJ2k or Derrick Henry-like season in 2020 to couple with his other Pro Bowl snub seasons. Sadly, the Bears don’t have a ring of honor, so Forte cannot be held in that high level of praise. Ultimately, he should be placed in the hall of very good & regarded as a Bears legend with Mike Ditka, Buddy Ryan, and company.

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By: Jake Rajala

The former Tennessee Titans mythical ball-carrier Chris Johnson, also known as CJ2K, retired on November 5th of 2018. Afterward, he nicely earned his college degree from East Carolina.

Johnson had quite the NFL journey, to say the least. He finished with 9,651 rushing yards, 55 TDs, and a career YPC of 4.5. He had an unearthly 2009 season – as he ran by opponents for 2,006 yds (including a 91-yd run), 14 TDs, with a career-high 5.6 YPC. He even deservedly won OPOY and earned first-team All-Pro in 2009.

With that stated, there is an intriguing, pivotal question surrounding Johnson at this point: Is Johnson a future Hall of Famer?

Johnson is certainly a gift from the football gods, as he is only one of eight RBs to rush for 2,000+ yds in a single season. Although, he didn’t exactly mop the floor in countless other seasons in his career. He was only named All-Pro once and he only garnered three Pro Bowl nods in his playing career. Meanwhile, Adrian Peterson has obtained four All-Pro nods (besides also winning an MVP award). “Shady” has also been named All-Pro twice in his career and he’s also been to the Pro Bowl six times.

Contrary to the unbiased Johnson’s take on whether he should be cast into football heaven, I honestly don’t believe he garnered enough success to land in Canton. It can be slightly easier to reminisce about his magic – given that he wreaked havoc around 2010. However, I don’t believe he stands tall enough amid all-time greats to wear a gold jacket.

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Chris Johnson, the legendary Tennessee Titans running back that broke the 40-yard dash record at the NFL combine (4.24) in 2008, hung up his cleats in 2017 as an Arizona Cardinal. The RB referred to as CJ2K put together one of the best RB careers in NFL history.

Johnson may not have tried to keep a career pace with Tom Brady, unlike Frank Gore, but he put together some of the most electric single-season performances in NFL history. Johnson shocked the football world with 2006 rushing yards in 2009 while registering 503 receiving yards in the season. Johnson became one of seven RBs ever to eclipse 2k rushing yards in a single season. His total yard count of 2,509 yards was also a record for most total yards in a season.

CJ2K wasn’t just a ball carrier with blazing speed, but he was very reliable & durable. Johnson didn’t miss one game from 2009-2013. That’s very impressive for a player that averaged 1,374 rushing yards and roughly eight rushing touchdowns a season during that span.

The elite RBs in today’s league has struggled more to maintain excellence and the ability to stay on the football field. Alvin Kamara has missed four games in four seasons, Saquon Barkley and Christian McCaffrey are coming off season-ending injuries, and Adrian Peterson has never had a three-year span without missing a game. The King himself, Derrick Henry, who became the seventh RB to run for 2,000+ yards in a single season last year (also for TENN), missed a game last year.

Johnson didn’t quite hold his reputation as a home run hitter at RB and lead bell cow after leaving the Titans. The monster Titan RB signed with the New York Jets in 2014 and didn’t find continued career success. For the first time in his career, he didn’t have a 1,000 yard rushing season (663 yards). He also notched a mere one touchdown on the ground. It wouldn’t be the first time that a Hall of Fame-caliber RB hits a wall in MetLife stadium. Ladainian Tomlinson played his last season in the league as a Jet, where he unveiled 280 rushing yards. The Big Apple just might be where elite RBs allow their elite production to come to an end.

CJ2K and the legendary dual-threat QB, Michael Vick held down the Jets huddle in 2014. The aging duo led the Jets to a disappointing 4-12 record. If the future HOF QB-RB duo performed together a couple of years prior, they would undoubtedly go down as the most efficient rushing offense in NFL history.

After his one-year stint in New York, Johnson played two more years in an Arizona Cardinals uniform. His production took a bump from 2014 to 2015, where he clocked 814 rushing yards. The legendary RB then struggled to get involved, as he surfaced in four games in 2016 and four matchups in 2017. On April 24th, 2019, Chris Johnson announced his retirement as a Tennessee Titan. It was a quiet finish to a career for a player that holds a nickname for prolific magic done in one season: CJ2K

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