LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- D'Onta Foreman has been here before—more times than he can count.
The 27-year-old running back came to Chicago to be the lead back in a Bears offense that needed to fill the void left by David Montgomery. Foreman knew he'd be splitting carries with Khalil Herbert, but after a career year in Carolina, he figured his moment had arrived.
But the Bears' selection of Roschon Johnson in April and the need for more value on special teams led to Foreman being a healthy scratch starting in Week 2.
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Foreman didn't pout. He stayed locked in and waited for his moment.
"I’ve been in this situation a lot in my life," Foreman said Thursday at Halas Hall. "This not my first rodeo. I’ve been thrown in the fire plenty of times and I’ve excelled."
Last season, it came when the Panthers traded Christian McCaffrey to the 49ers midseason, putting Foreman in line to be the lead back.
A breakout season with 914 yards followed.
This season, Foreman's moment will arrive in Week 6. With Herbert (high-ankle sprain), Roschon Johnson (concussion), and Travis Homer (hamstring) all unlikely to play Sunday vs. the Minnesota Vikings, Foreman will be the man charged with spearheading the Bears' ground game.
"I was prepared for that moment. I’m prepared for this moment," Foreman said when asked about taking over for McCaffrey. "This is what I do. I’m calm, I’m confident, and I just got to go show it. A lot of people counted me out. I’ve seen a lot of stuff about myself. I got to go prove it."
Many professional athletes choose to stay off social media. It's a toxic breeding ground for hate and negativity.
But Foreman wades into those waters on purpose. He wants to see what's being said about him and use it as fuel for a tank that rarely reaches empty.
“Just stuff I’ve seen just through the course of training camp about me not being good enough and this and that – the reason why I’m not playing," Foreman told NBC Sports Chicago, the Chicago Sun-Times, and the Chicago Tribune. "Whatever the case may be. Just everybody with their own -- I just feel like – I’m definitely filing it away. I’ve got a lot of people on Twitter that I’ve seen. I’ve got things bookmarked for sure. When things go well, as I expect them to and hope for them to, certain people they can’t congrats me or none of that. You got to keep that same energy you have.
"It motivates me. I’ll be like, ’Oh no, you remember you said this?’”
Foreman has screenshots and bookmarks of some of the hate he has received. He's got some accounts earmarked for when he does what he knows he can Sunday.
He's the ultimate receipt keeper. That extends to social media hate and NFL teams that have doubted or given up on him.
Exhibit A? Foreman's gashing of the Atlanta Falcons, where he racked up 248 yards and four touchdowns across two games against a team that cut him in 2021.
"I felt like in those games I had something to prove," Foreman told NBC, the Sun-Times, and the Tribune. "I feel like when I was in Atlanta, I was disappointed they let me go. I feel like I was the better guy than everybody there at the time. And they let me go. So I was out for blood at that time."
CHICAGO BEARS
For a guy who plays with a massive chip on his shoulder, you'd expect Foreman to have been frustrated or angry by the Bears' decision to make him a healthy scratch for the past month.
But his familiarity with being counted out, pushed down, and doubted gives him a sense of calm. There's comfort in that situation.
"My twin brother, he asked me after my last game, he asked me, ‘Why are you so calm? Why don’t you be upset after games and stuff like that? Do you really feel like something’s gonna happen?' I said yeah. I don’t know what that something is gonna be. I feel like if I look back through my life, something’s gonna shake for me.
"And something shaked."
Herbert and Homer haven't practiced at all this week. Johnson remains in concussion protocol, and it's unlikely he clears by Sunday.
That means Week 6 will be the Foreman show. He knew his opportunity would come. It always does.
Now, he just can't waste it.
"It's time to go."