FanHouse MattForte

With the beginning of the NFL Network's glorious Thursday night football beginning this week, fantasy football FanHouse is bringing you a preview for each and every Thursday night game from here on out. You've already seen the rankings, but things can change before Sunday. One thing that can't change? Your lineup choices for the guys playing Thursday evening. That's why we're here.

The Bears enter the game having lost three of their last four (the one win was at home over the hapless Browns). Their defense has plummeted from a respectable unit to one pretty easily shredded, whether via ground or air. The Niners come in having lost four straight and five of their last six. They are ranked fourth in the NFL in run defense and 24th against the pass.

Am I scared about the prospects of Steve Slaton losing carries to Ryan Moats (and even Chris Brown)? Absolutely. I'm more concerned about the overreactions from across the fantasy football world. Sure, I took it on the chin with Slaton in one league, but last week was hardly indicative of what will transpire from here on out.

Consider the following:
- If Gary Kubiak was going to send a message to his second-year running back with problems holding onto the football, what better opponent than the league's worst run defense?

- Slaton shredded the Colts in Indy last year, and that was without Matt Schaub at the helm to take pressure off him.

- Frank Gore got loose for a 64-yard touchdown against the Colts and added 43 receiving yards. Slaton is faster, more elusive and a better pass-catcher than Gore.

So, yeah, of course last week made me worried about Slaton. But I live by the "no guts, no glory" credo. You'll find Slaton in my top 15. You can have Ryan Moats.

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Bengals 45, Bears 10. It was 45-3 before the Bears finally got into the end zone, but the game had long been over at that point. It was one of those games that makes you wonder -- were the Bengals that good or the Bears that bad? As is usually the case when you ask that question, it was a combination of both. You have to give the Bengals credit, especially Carson Palmer for his precision passing. Well, really, the entire team deserves loads of credit.

Still, this game was more about how pathetic the Bears played. For a team with Super Bowl aspirations, that was a simply despicable attempt at playing football on nearly every front. More games like that, and the playoffs won't even be a possibility come late November.

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Sunday Evening Wrap checks out players who increased or decreased their value during the Sunday afternoon games.

Faller of the Week: Everyone on the Oakland Raiders. The Houston Texans entered the game as one of the league's worst defenses. They were the worst in the NFL against the run. Sunday, the Raiders gained just 165 yards and only a single first down on the ground against those same Texans. I'm done with Darren McFadden. Michael Bush and Justin Fargas shouldn't be considered viable fantasy contributors in any format, and I'd even give up on Zach Miller (which isn't his fault, but he's not going to put up stats for this embarrassingly inept offense). This team is dead to me, and they should be to you, too.

Since arriving in Chicago, Jay Cutler's been fighting the stigma that he's more of a stat-monger than a winner. The only way to change the feelings of the general public is to go out and win tough games. Anyone can look good during a blowout of an inferior opponent.

For the second consecutive week, Cutler has won close games in come-from-behind fashion. Last week, he led the Bears on a 72-yard, game-tying touchdown drive and then a 41-yard game-winning field goal drive against the Steelers. Sunday afternoon, Cutler brought the Bears back from an early 13-0 deficit to lead 17-13. The Bears lost the lead, but that was of no consequence, as Cutler again led them on a game-winning drive.

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Each Monday of the fantasy football season, we'll cut through the fantasy numbers put up by individuals and tell you what they really mean.

In the overwhelming majority of fantasy football leagues this season, Matt Forte was a top-5 pick. He was coming off a sensational rookie season and now had a strong-armed quarterback to stretch the defense and open running lanes for him. Thus far, the payoff for Forte owners has been quite futile. In two games, he's carried the ball 38 times for 84 yards -- without scoring a touchdown.

Be patient, though, because the payoff is on the horizon.

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On the strength of hard-hitting defense, Jay Cutler's right arm and Robbie Gould's clutch kicking, the Chicago Bears won their home opener in an extremely tough fight with the defending Super Bowl champion Pittsburgh Steelers.

The Steelers outgained the Bears 308 to 275 in a gritty defensive battle. They had 21 first downs to the Bears' 17. They, unlike the Bears, were able to effectively run the football. In the end, though, the Bears won on the strength of something the Steelers lacked: the ability to hit a big field goal.

With attention spans dwindling, we forego full game-by-game previews to give you the essentials you need to know about every contest this glorious NFL weekend. We call it The Once-Over.

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While there are always going to be matchups we like and others we don't like, we need to remember it's Week 1 of a new fantasy football season. The preseason doesn't matter too much, nor does last season. Sure, we have to use something upon which to base our rankings, and those factors will be somewhat weighed, but we also need to use our brain and not get too cute.

For example, Ryan Grant shredded the Bears last season in Green Bay. Does that mean he's going to blow up again? Considering the Bears' run defense is much stronger than pass, we're saying an emphatic no. That's just one example, and we'll talk a bit more after you've seen the top 50 fantasy running backs for the week.

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Training camps have wrapped up, the NFL season is right around the corner, and it's still hot as sin outside. But instead of cooling you off with a warm island song, FanHouse break out ye old heat check for our 2009 NFL Season Previews. " We'll rate each club in 5 categories on a scale of 1 to 10, high score wins.

Expectations in the Windy City are sky-high, coming off an offseason in which the Bears acquired who should be their first franchise quarterback in ages: Jay Cutler. He's doing photoshoots, selling jerseys with ease and playing well in preseason games. Can it translate into a playoff run ... or more?