Recently someone told me that Floyd Mayweather can’t read.

Now, when I first heard that, I could not believe it. He lives in the United States, and has his own social media pages. Millionaire like him? Ha. Good one.

Until I hear him trying to read a drop for a radio show.

Is it true? He can’t really read? I’m still not buying it. Maybe he is dyslexic. Maybe he forgot his contact lenses. It’s just not reasonable for anyone like him to not know how to read.

Yes, he had a tough childhood. Yes, he dropped out of high school. But once he was a student-athlete. Student first.

I see many student-athletes who undermine the academic aspect of their lives to focus on sports. Is that really a great idea? Consequences are one thing. Killing your chances to the pros is another.

Let’s take a look at the NFL. The rule states that you do not need a high school diploma to be eligible for the draft or free agency. However, a player must be three years off of the would-be graduation year of his class. For example, if I drop out of the school and want to enter the draft, it would be 2019, three years after my graduation year, which is 2016.

So fine. You wait a little, work out, and maybe attend a community college to play football. The NFL Draft is around the corner and the combines are held.

Here is the biggest problem. The combines are invitation-only.

Sure, you can enter the draft. You can enter free agency. So what? No team will sign you. First of all, it’s very slim that they heard of you. Second, even if they have, they would much rather sign a player who went through the invaluable experience of D1 football than some chump off of the street. Third, what kind of character are you showing if you were not even disciplined enough to finish high school? Lastly, what if this whole NFL thing doesn’t work out. What will you do then?

The dream of the National Football League is unlikely. Don’t make it impossible.

Andrew Luck, one of the best quarterback in the league right now, attended Stanford, already a very prestigious school. While making a name out of himself as the best collegiate quarterback, he also took the hardest courses he could take. He challenged himself physically and academically, and the coaches and GMs took note of that. You might think that they are not watching but those efforts do not go unnoticed.

So remember kids. Student-athlete. There are more important things in your life than sports. Keep focus, do what you are suppose to do, and life will work itself out for you. Even in fantasy.

Players I LOVE

QB Matthew Stafford, Detroit Lions: Stafford, to say the least, has been inconsistent and relatively poor. Yes, Megatron is limping, but he has different weapons like Golden Tate and Reggie Bush. He is still a top-10 QB, but he need to turn it around quickly, and he might this week. He has a great matchup against the Saints team that allowed 268 yards per game and let the Mike Glennon-led Buccaneers offense score 25 points.

QB Tom Brady, New England Patriots: I was tough on him all year, but he finally figured it out, feasting on the defenses past two weeks. I’m riding him against the Jets defense that allowed the most touchdown passes along with the Bucs.

RB Andre Ellington, Arizona Cardinals: Carson Palmer is back. So? He’s no Brett Favre. Arizona’s still running the ball. Oakland defense has allowed over 30 points on each of past two games and the second-most yards per game on the ground. When the Cardinals go up, and trust me, they will, Ellington could get a lot of work in.

RB Fred Jackson, Buffalo Bills: Spiller who? He has been irrelevant this season while Fred Jackson has pole vaulted as top-15 back. He hasn’t been finding the endzone as much as anyone wants, but he is catching the ball like he is Reggie Bush’s incarnation. While the Vikings secondary has been great, it really struggled to stop the run, allowing third-most points against the opposing running backs.

RB Justin Forsett, Baltimore Ravens: Out of the mess that was the Ravens backfield, Justin Forsett came out as a clear winner ahead of Bernard Pierce and Lorenzo Taliaferro. Flacc Attack’s five TD took many away from the ground game, but what are the chances that it will happen again? Atlanta Falcons cannot stop the run to save their lives, and Forsett will walk over what is left after Matt Forte shredded them last week.

WR Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons: White has not been producing compared to surging Julio Jones, he is still a veteran you can’t easily drop. Nothing fancy, but he will consistently get you points. This week could be his week, as he goes against the Ravens defense that gave up 283.7 yards per game in the air.

WR Percy Harvin, Seattle Seahawks: Ok, so he hasn’t been so great last few games. He got three touchdowns called back, and recorded negative yards against the Cowboys. Yup. Negative. So why am I picking him? Cause it’s the Rams! If he can’t get it done against St. Louis defense that allowed third most fantasy points against the opposing receivers, then yeah, it’s time to panic.

WR Golden Tate, Detroit Lions: See Stafford, Matthew. He may not be Calvin Johnson, but he is getting the targets like him.

WR James Jones, Oakland Raiders: Oakland Raiders? Oakland Raiders! This is going to be the best matchup for the Silver and Black receivers all year as they face the Cardinals that relinquished the MOST yards in the air. Yup. Worse than Jacksonville. If you are ever going to roll the dice on the Raiders, this is time.

TE Jordan Cameron, Cleveland Browns: After a dismal start to the season, Jordan Cameron broke out against my Steelers, hitting triple digit on the yards department while also landing on the endzone. And you know, Jacksonville.

TE Larry Donnell, Dallas Cowboys: After great start to the season, he has put up two straight zeros. Is it time to accept him as a one-hit-wonder? Not so fast. While Dallas D isn’t the black hole that was anticipated, the Cowboys still struggle to stop the receivers up the middle.

TE Dwayne Allen, Indianapolis Colts: Bengals have a great defense, but like the Cowboys, really struggled to stop the tight ends. With Andrew Luck playing quarterback, anything is possible. You just gotta believe…

Cleveland Browns D/ST: Insert defense facing Jacksonville Jaguars here. They also kept the Steelers offense led by Le’Veon Bell and Big Ben in check. Watch out.

Buffalo Bills D/ST: Yes, they got torched by red-hot Tom Terrific last week, but Vikings offense led by Teddy Bridgewater and Matt Asiata? All day every day.

Players I HATE

QB Cam Newton, Carolina Panthers: So he made me eat my words. I can guarantee you it won’t happen again. He threw 46 times, and that kind of usage won’t repeat any time soon. The Packers have limited the opposing quarterbacks to third least yards per game and fifth least touchdowns allowed. I need at least two more good weeks to have faith in him again.

QB Eli Manning, New York Giants: Unlike Cam Newton, Eli is coming off of horrendous week after putting up solid numbers before. Even though eight sacks could be faulted on the offensive line, he couldn’t get the ball out quickly enough. It won’t be easy again this week as he is away at Dallas, facing a tough matchup against the Cowboys D that allowed only eight touchdowns in the air.

QB Andy Dalton, Cincinnati Bengals: Hated him all year, loved him last week, hate him again. The Colts allowed only eight touchdowns in the air this season and also sixth in sacks. Can the Ginger Tiger put up back-to-back performances against a tough defense? I don’t think so.

RB Matt Asiata, Minnesota Vikings: Is he done? After his breakout performance against the Falcons (surprise, surprise), he hasn’t found an endzone or hit 100 yards. Buffalo still hasn’t allowed a touchdown yet this season and allowing the least yards per game on the ground. Yeah, I think he is done.

RB Bishop Sankey, Tennessee Titans: He couldn’t get it done against Jacksonville without Shonn Greene. I officially give up on him.

RB Steven Jackson, Atlanta Falcons: It has truly been an up-and-down season for the former Rams feature back, as he alternated single and double digit points past five weeks. He had single digit last week. Does that mean he will go off this week? Nope. He had his chance to break out against the Bears run D, but failed to do so, and the Ravens have allowed the second least fantasy points against opposing running backs.

RB Ronnie Hillman, Denver Broncos: Not many players labeled Broncos RB have enjoyed a good season, and looks like it will continue as they face the 49ers this week. Even though Ronnie Hillman had a great week against a very good Jets run defense, he will still be sharing carries and the Niners are no walkover.

RB Darren McFadden, Oakland Raiders: Just in case you were actually seriously contemplating on starting him. I’ll do the work for ya. Don’t.

WR Michael Crabtree, San Francisco 49ers: I am a huge fan of Michael Crabtree. He has a talent to be one of the best receivers in the league, but he just can’t produce consistently. He and Anquan Boldin are two of Kaep’s favorite target, and he needs to separate himself from the pack. Until I see that, I’m not putting my trust in him. Denver has allowed second least touchdowns in the air and third least points against the opposing wideouts.

WR Brandin Cooks, New Orleans Saints: So the newest Saint that replaced Kenny Stills in this column is….. drum roll please ……. Brandin Cooks. But he is on the list for a wrong reason. He is leading the team in targets as Jimmy Graham is injured and Kenny Stills struggling, but he has a very tough matchup against the Lions defense that has limited the opposing receivers to least touchdowns allowed, second least yards per game, and least fantasy points allowed. However, keep an eye on him.

WR Rueben Randle, New York Giants: All greats have short memories, right? I’m forgetting last week. Never happened. He got catapulted to the No. 1 WR spot in the Giants depth chart. Like Brandin Cooks, he should be on your watch list. However, he should also be avoided this week. Did I talk about the Dallas D in Eli Manning section? I think so.

WR Eric Decker, New York Jets: He may be the only half-usable offensive piece from the Jets besides Chris Ivory, and he has been hurt and inconsistent. Patriots tends to eat the Jets up, and their secondary is putting in some serious work this season.

WR Mohamed Sanu, Cincinnati Bengals: With A.J. Green out, he stepped up as a leading receiver. The star man is likely to come back, and Sanu will again take a backseat to him. The matchup isn’t favorable either as he goes against the Colts that allowed second least fantasy points against opposing WRs.

TE Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs: Love the talent, hate the matchup. Alex Smith will spray the ball around and the Chargers have been great against TEs, allowing fourth least fantasy points to them.

TE Owen Daniels, Baltimore Ravens: While he might find the endzone again, Daniels is simply not getting the touches. None of five touchdowns from Flacco went to him last week. As a tight end, it is crucial for him to score, and it’s just not happening right now. Matchup against the Falcons that shut down the seams isn’t helping either.

San Francisco 49ers D/ST: I don’t care where you drafted your defense. If it’s against Team Manning, avoid at all cost.

Kansas City Chiefs D/ST: Philip Rivers is not messing around. Really. He is putting together a MVP-type season and doesn’t look like it’s going to stop.