Three weeks ago, while my mom was attending
back-to-school night, I was home alone, enjoying a rare tranquil environment.
For me, my peace comes when I’m sitting on the couch with my dog, watching
sports. So, after I finished all my work, that’s exactly what I did.

As I soaked in all the peace and quiet I possibly
could before my mom returned, I saw a commercial for the Powerball. My mind was
racing furiously, flipping through every small thing I would do if I were to
ever win such a grandiose amount of money. When my mind finally settled, I
thought to myself, “You’ll never win, so why bother?” Still alone and relaxed, I
thought about it some more – as you can see, I thought about this much longer
than any normal person would have. I finally came to such a simple conclusion:
Someone has to win. So why couldn’t that someone be me?

The commercial was a good ten minutes old and I was
still thinking about it, and it really wasn’t even that great of a commercial.
All of a sudden, my mom walks through the door, and my sacred alone time was
waiting patiently in the toilet, ready to be flushed.

Instead of apprising me of all the fun that occurred
at back-to-school night, my mom greeted me with news that’s usually preceded by
an “I think you should sit down.” One of my old baseball teammates has cancer. I
almost had to stand up just so I could sit down again. For the first time in my
life – and I’m not exaggerating – I was speechless. I didn’t know how to react.
I was scared, more than anything.

Once again, my mind was racing. And that’s when it
hit me: Cancer, the lottery, and the peculiar parallels between the two. There
are billions of people who play the lottery, and no one ever truly believes that
he or she possesses that one sacred ticket that contains all the winning
numbers. Cancer is strikingly similar. There are billions of people in this
world, and no one ever thinks he or she — or even someone he or she knows —
will be diagnosed with cancer.

The thing is, I’m not too close with this kid
anymore. We played baseball together, and we were friends, but we weren’t the
“Hey, let’s hang out”-type friends. Nonetheless, it hit me hard when I was told
of his cancer. I couldn’t imagine how I would feel is this happened to someone
with whom I’m extremely close. Which is probably how every member of the
Indianapolis Colts feels.

A little over a week ago, Chuck Pagano, the
first-year head coach of the Colts, was hospitalized for leukemia. Not only did
the Colts lose their coach — for the time being — they lost a family member.
Mike Golic, one of the hosts of Mike & Mike in the Morning, commented on the
situation: “During the season, you’re with your team and coaches more than
you’re with your real family. So, essentially, they become your family.” I
couldn’t even imagine.

Playing with heavy hearts and their coach in mind,
the Colts were humiliated in the first half of their meeting with the Packers,
which was the team’s first game without Pagano. I knew there was absolutely no
way the Colts would just roll over and surrender, and they didn’t. Led by a
superstar rookie quarterback, the Colts battled back and managed to walk away
with a tear-jerking, come-from-behind victory, a victory that was more than just
another one for the win column.

Players I Love for Week 6

Andrew Luck, QB, Colts: Luck was terrific —
from a fantasy standpoint — last week in the Colts’ emotional 30-27 victory
over the Packers, throwing for 362 yards and two touchdowns, not to mention the
rushing touchdown for good measure. This week, Luck is going up against a Jets
defense that’s praying Darrelle Revis’ ACL injury magically heals overnight.
Since that’s not going to happen, Luck should do just fine. Don’t let the Jets’
pass defense ranking (8th) fool you. They haven’t had to deal with many
quarterbacks that are as skilled as Luck. In the Jets’ five games this season,
they’ve faced Ryan Fitzpatrick, Ben Roethlisberger (the lone above-average
quarterback they’ve faced), Ryan Tannehill, Alex Smith, and Matt Schaub
(borderline).

Christian Ponder, QB, Vikings: I’ve been very
impressed by Ponder’s performance this year. He’s completing 69% of his passes,
and is helping the 4-1 (the one loss was by three points) Vikings redefine the
term “overachieve.” The former Florida State Seminole is coming off of a
258-yard, 2-touchdown performance against the Titans. After last week’s game
against the Titans, which has the fifth-worst pass defense in the NFL, Ponder
will face an even worse pass defense this week, when he and the Vikings travel
to FedEx Field to take on the Redskins.

Joe Flacco, QB, Ravens: Flacco is in the same
boat as Luck. He’ll be opposed by the Cowboys, a team that, since Week 1, has
yet to face decent competition at the quarterback position. Dallas has seen
Russell Wilson, Josh Freeman, and Jay Cutler. This will be the team’s first true
test. Flacco, who has looked impressively strong so far, should be able to crack
the code to this Cowboys defense.

Frank Gore, RB, 49ers: It’s finally here: The
rematch of last year’s thrilling NFC Championship game, in which the Giants won
– though the 49ers deserved the win – 20-17. Gore carried the ball just 16 times
and tallied 74 yards in that heartbreaking loss to the defending Super Bowl
champions. Through the first five games, Gore is averaging 16 carries per game,
86.4 yards per game, and a career-high 5.4 yards per carry (he also has four
touchdowns). The only game in which Gore hasn’t found the end zone this year was
in the team’s lone defeat, a stunning 24-13 loss against the Vikings. Last week,
Gore pounded a lackadaisical Buffalo defense for 106 yards and a touchdown on 14
carries. The Giants are coming into this game allowing 111.4 yards per game to
opposing running backs. Gore, as well as the entire 49ers team and the city of
San Francisco, are hungry for revenge, and I can’t see anything preventing them
from doing so.

Ryan Mathews, RB, Chargers: In Mathews’
two-plus years in the league, he’s been haunted by the injury bug and has yet to
truly display what he has to offer – and he has a lot. While Mathews has spent a
great deal of time on the sidelines (due to various injuries), he’s played three
career games against the Broncos. In those three games, Mathews has 382 yards
and three scores on 72 carries and is averaging 127.3 yards per game – all of
which are more than he has against any other team. Despite Jackie Battle’s
presence, Mathews should see the bulk of the carries this Sunday, and I think
he’ll do a lot with them.

Reggie Wayne, WR, Colts: If you thought
Wayne’s time as a top fantasy wide receiver was over, you were wrong – very
wrong. Last year, while he didn’t light it up, he did deliver respectable
performances. This year, he has Mr. Luck throwing him the ball, and it seems as
if Wayne’s career has been reborn. In case you missed it, last week, Wayne
reeled in 13 receptions for 212 yards, and added a touchdown for good measure.
In each game this season, Wayne has caught at least six passes and has recorded
at least 70 yards. Good luck, Jets.

Dwayne Bowe, WR, Chiefs: Since his
disappointing performance in Week 1, in which he caught just three passes for 53
yards, Bowe has caught at least six passes each week and has posted two
100+-yard performances. The only two games in which Bowe has scored (two
touchdowns in Week 2 and one in Week 4), he surpassed the century mark –
something I think he’ll accomplish with ease this week. Tampa Bay has the worst
pass defense in the league and is allowing 358.4 yards per game through the
air.

Percy Harvin, WR, Vikings: Harvin is one of
the few legitimate triple threats. He can hurt you as a receiver, he can hurt
you out of the backfield, and he can hurt you in the return game. He’s certainly
one of a kind. Playing the second-worst pass defense in the NFL this week,
Harvin should definitely be able to do some damage as a receiver. In his two
career games against the Redskins, Harvin has ten receptions for 97 yards and a
touchdown (as well as seven carries for 53 yards). With Robert Griffin III’s
status up in the air, the Redskins’ offense could struggle to move the ball if
it’s without its rookie phenom manning the quarterback position. If that is the
case, it’s just more chances for Christian Ponder to get the ball in Harvin’s
hands.

Tony Gonzalez, TE, Falcons: Having spent 12
years with the Kansas City Chiefs, Gonzalez has a plethora of experience against
the AFC West. Gonzalez has played 22 career games against the Raiders, and has
posted some pretty impressive numbers: 110 receptions, 1,473 yards (13.39 yards
per reception), and 8 touchdowns. Oakland’s defense isn’t anything to jump out
of your seat over. Down in the red zone, Gonzalez should get the majority of the
looks, and I can almost guarantee, he’ll turn at least one of those looks into a
score.

Players I Hate for Week 6

Eli Manning, QB, Giants: I just think the
49ers defense will be too hungry and too relentless to hold off. Working with a
banged up offensive line, Manning will be trying to avoid pressure all game. I
just don’t see Manning or any of the Giants performing well in this
one.

Jamaal Charles, RB, Chiefs: While Tampa Bay’s
pass defense is incredibly weak, its run defense is at the other end of the
spectrum (best in the league). The Bucs are allowing just 73.8 yards per game,
and have faced its fair share of solid running backs (DeAngelo Williams, Ahmad
Bradshaw, DeMarco Murray, Alfred Morris). I’m not saying Tampa’s going to
completely shut down Charles, I just think he won’t be as good as he has been
the past few weeks.

Ahmad Bradshaw, RB, Giants: He’s playing the
49ers. No, thank you.

Vincent Jackson, WR, Buccaneers: Jackson has
been the definition of inonsistent this season, alternating between 100-yard,
one-touchdown-games and less-than-50-yards games. Not only has Jackson been
wildly inconsistent, he hasn’t found much success against the Chiefs. In 13
career games, he has a mere 35 receptions for 638 yards (49.1 yards per game)
and three touchdowns.

Jordy Nelson, WR, Packers: Nelson hasn’t
lived up to the high expectations he set for himself last year (15 TDs), and I
just don’t see him starting to do so this week against one of the NFL’s best
defenses. Houston has suffocated its opponents this year, and its veteran
secondary will look to take advantage of a struggling Green Bay
squad.