"He could not have grown up in a more different environment than the one where he's made himself an NFL star, a perennial Pro Bowl player who's three receptions away from setting the career record for the franchise that's known more for passing the football than any other.

If he couldn't set that record in San Diego, though, Antonio Gates would very much like it to be in Detroit. A perfect place, in a different way, for it to happen.

How fortuitous that the weekend after Gates got that close to Hall of Fame receiver (and Chargers coach) Charlie Joiner's team record of 586 catches, the Chargers are playing against the Lions at Detroit, where Gates was born and raised and grew out of some tough circumstances. "