First Response: Forte, Slaton pick it up

It's OK. You can exhale now. Put down the paper bag and stop hyperventilating.

We finally got the type of performances we were waiting for from a couple of stars Sunday. And it's about time.

While players like Steve Smith of the Giants and Mike Sims-Walker in Jacksonville continue to thrive, you were hitting the panic button on Matt Forte and Steve Slaton -- and for good reason.

Through three weeks, Forte and Slaton combined for no touchdowns, but they were first-round draft picks in the majority of Fantasy leagues. Willis McGahee had six touchdowns over that span, and running backs like John Kuhn, Rock Cartwright and Ovie Mughelli had already found the end zone at least once.

Matt Forte was the third most productive running back in Fantasy on Sunday. (US Presswire)

The trade thoughts were flying through your head, and you were thinking about dumping Forte and Slaton for anything of value in return. Well, it's a good thing you waited because Sunday came the first of what should be many rewards.

Forte had 12 carries for 121 yards and a touchdown and caught two passes for 19 yards against Detroit. And Slaton had 21 carries for 65 yards and a touchdown and two catches for 24 yards and a touchdown against Oakland.

This is why you drafted these guys. And this is what you have to hope for the rest of the season.

While there were some negatives -- Forte only got 12 carries and Slaton averaged only 3.1 yards per carry -- they showed big-play ability. It came at the right time with Forte heading into a bye week, and Slaton has a tough matchup at Arizona. Still, you can't bench these players when they play as expected.

Now, if you are looking to trade Forte or Slaton, then Sunday's performance was a good thing. And Forte has a tough schedule with matchups ahead against Arizona, San Francisco, Philadelphia and two games with Minnesota. Slaton's schedule is easier with only tough matchups looming with Arizona, San Francisco and Tennessee.

But you drafted Forte and Slaton for days like this. My suggestion would be to hold onto them unless you get an overwhelming offer in return.

In the meantime, look for them to get rolling now that they remember how to play like stars.

Let's take a look around at the rest of the Week 4 action ...

Start of the Week review: If you saw the Bears scored 48 points against the Lions you would think Jay Cutler had a tremendous day. While he was extremely solid with three touchdowns (two passing and one rushing), he didn't post the kind of passing yards we were hoping for with only 141. It didn't help that Devin Hester (shoulder) and Johnny Knox (leg) left the game early, but Cutler still finished as a No. 1 Fantasy quarterback and was a good call as the Start of the Week.

Sit of the Week review: Aaron Rodgers plays Monday night at Minnesota, and the key for him in this matchup is his offensive line. If Chad Clifton (ankle) is able to play, that will help Rodgers' outlook, but he has been sacked 12 times this season. The Vikings will attack Rodgers, and we don't expect him to play well this week.

Insane stat line of the day: We expected David Garrard to have a good game against the Titans since their pass defense has struggled all year. But we didn't expect him to have the best Fantasy day of any quarterback. Garrard passed for 323 yards and three touchdowns and had eight carries for 38 yards and a lost fumble. He has started to play well again with the development of Mike Sims-Walker, and Garrard is someone to definitely consider adding as your No. 2 Fantasy quarterback.

Out-of-nowhere stat line of the day: Browns rookie wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi came into Week 4 against Cincinnati with two catches for 31 yards. He left the Bengals game with eight catches for 148 yards. We'll see if that continues now that Derek Anderson is the new starter for Cleveland, but the Browns need someone to step up in the passing game with Braylon Edwards (no catches) struggling. Massaquoi is someone to definitely add to your scout team.

Guy we were way right about: Tony Romo has now gone back-to-back games without throwing a touchdown after getting shutout by Carolina last week and now Denver. He passed for 255 yards and an interception and also lost a fumble at the Broncos. It was a risk sitting your starting Fantasy quarterback this week, but Denver's pass defense has played well and Romo has looked lost since the season opener at Tampa Bay. You should be concerned with Romo if he doesn't play well at Kansas City next week, but keep him active against the Chiefs.

Guy we were way wrong about: Derrick Mason had seven catches for 88 yards and a touchdown at New England. He was on his way to a monster day with six catches for 77 yards and the touchdown in the first quarter alone. I also didn't expect Joe Flacco to have a big day, but he was better than expected with 264 passing yards, two touchdowns and one interception. Flacco and Tom Brady (258 passing yards and one touchdown, 11 rushing yards and a touchdown and a lost fumble) finished with almost exactly the same production in a standard-scoring Fantasy league.

Overachieving defense of the week: We expected the 49ers defense to play well against the Rams, and even the 35-0 rout wasn't a surprise. The defense that overachieved in Week 4 was New Orleans. I expected Mark Sanchez to struggle on the road, so his three interceptions and lost fumble didn't shock me. But the Saints had two defensive touchdowns and carried this team and even outplayed the high-flying offense. If that continues, the Saints will definitely be a Super Bowl contender.

Underachieving defense of the week: The Giants dominated the Bucs in Week 3 and should have done the same against the Chiefs. Instead, the Giants only had one fumble recovery and five sacks while allowing 16 points. Granted, the Giants were still a dominant unit, but with the matchup against Kansas City, you were expecting the Giants DST to play like the No. 1 option in all Fantasy leagues. It's a good thing the Giants can make it up in Week 5 against Oakland.

Names to add to your scout team ...

Seneca Wallace , quarterback, Seattle (257 passing yards and a touchdown, four carries for 8 yards and a touchdown)
Chad Henne , quarterback, Miami (115 passing yards and a touchdown)
Jerome Harrison , running back Cleveland (29 carries, 121 rushing yards, five catches for 31 yards and a lost fumble)
Sammy Morris , running back, New England (six carries for 21 yards and a touchdown and five catches for 35 yards)
Mohamed Massaquoi , wide receiver, Cleveland (eight catches for 148 yards)
Kenny Britt , wide receiver, Tennessee (seven catches for 105 yards)
Austin Collie , wide receiver, Indianapolis (six catches for 65 yards and a touchdown)
Brian Hartline , wide receiver, Miami (two catches for 17 yards and a touchdown)
Bobby Wade , wide receiver, Kansas City (two catches for 8 yards and a touchdown)
Marcedes Lewis , tight end, Jacksonville (four catches for 76 yards and a touchdown)

Injury alerts ...

Eli Manning , bruised heel, considered questionable for Week 5 vs. Oakland
Matthew Stafford , knee, considered doubtful for Week 5 vs. Pittsburgh
Correll Buckhalter , ankle, considered questionable for Week 5 vs. New England
Calvin Johnson , leg, considered probable for Week 5 vs. Pittsburgh
Devin Hester , shoulder, has a bye in Week 5
Johnny Knox , leg, has a bye in Week 5
Zach Miller , concussion, considered questionable for Week 5 at New York Giants

The last word: On one of my weekly radio appearances on 790 AM in South Florida, a caller asked me to apologize this week for backing Darren McFadden this offseason as a good Fantasy option. I told him if McFadden didn't perform well against the Texans, who were last in the NFL in run defense, I would apologize. Well, here it is. McFadden is a complete bust after he had six carries for minus-3 yards and caught one pass for 5 yards. If he can't run on the Texans he can't run on anyone, and you should not use him in any leagues any time soon.

What stood out to you this week? How did your Fantasy teams do? Drop us a line and tell us about it at dmfantasyfootball@cbs.com. Be sure to put Attn: Week 4 in the subject field. Please include your full name, hometown and state and we'll respond to as many as e-mails we can.