CHICAGO, Ill., — One of the most unexpected contributors to the emergence of the 2025 Chicago Bears was seventh-round rookie running back Kyle Monangai. After a slow start over the first six weeks of the season, Monangai gained 740 of his 783 rushing yards in the final 12 games of the season and scored all five of his touchdowns.
Now, the challenge comes in how Monangai can follow up that season with another productive campaign in 2026.
Forte is no stranger to that challenge. After running for 1,238 yards and eight touchdowns in his rookie season in 2008, his numbers fell to 929 yards, four touchdowns, and he committed five fumbles in 2009. The former 10-year NFL pro advised Monangai on how to stay productive in year two.
“Once you get full tape on you, they know what they can try to scheme to try and stop him,” Forte said in an interview with the Bear Report.
But Monangai has something that could benefit him in terms of sustaining success — Ben Johnson.
“The benefit he has is definitely having Ben Johnson and that system, and Caleb Williams, where you can’t just put nine guys in the box every time. You also have a great play-action ability with the quarterback like that. He’s gotta reinvent himself, you gotta look and see, if I’m going up against the defense line and they’re really fast flow, I gotta be looking for the cutbacks, I really gotta press into the line of scrimmage and let my offensive linemen set up their blocks. I think that’s kind of the learning curve he’ll go through camp, and I think he’ll be able to do that.”
Moving on to the Bears themselves, 2025 was a tremendous season. Part of the reason why was Monangai’s success as a seventh-round pick.
It was the first time since 2020 that they made the playoffs, the first time since 2018 that they won the division, and the first time since Forte’s third season that they won a playoff game. While players and coaches at Halas Hall have acknowledged that, they’ve moved on to 2026. The next step in year two of the Ben Johnson-Ryan Poles partnership is making the playoffs for consecutive years, which hasn’t been done since 2005-2006. To accomplish that goal, Forte used a word rarely used to describe the Bears in the 21st century: consistency.
“I think they have started something and are continuing to build something that is going to be one of those teams that are perennially in the running to go to the Super Bowl and playoffs. Not just based on what they did last year, but it being Ben’s first year, I think this year is more important. What needs to happen is consistency. What are they going to get from our young players, and what are we going to get from our veterans? Knowing what’s expected, the standard that they’ve set, and that standard is finishing two playoff games last year, that’s like the bottom of the barrel. So, it’s either above and beyond that, or it’s not considered a success.”
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