Sports

Former Falcon calling on New Englanders for help

ATLANTA — Former Falcons linebacker Chris Draft has dedicated his life to giving back since playing in the National Football League.

Draft played with seven different teams from 1998-2010 and experienced the heart-wrenching reality of losing his wife, Keasha, to lung cancer in 2011. He has continued to lead the fight against lung cancer while also serving on a number of charitable committees, including the hunger-fighting Super Bowl party with a purpose, The Taste of The NFL.

This year, Draft awarded Super Bowl tickets to Patty Watkins, a lung cancer survivor, because Watkins raised the most money of all of the survivors who work with the Chris Draft Family Foundation. Watkins has been treated at Mass General Hospital and was brought back from the edge of death. At one point, Watkins was told she had two days to live - that was five years ago.

Watkins continues to work closely with Dr. Alice Shaw at Mass General to control a mutation that causes her specific form of cancer.

Draft says, "Patty is here because we know research works. Patty being here five years out says, 'Research is working.'"

Chris has a special challenge for New Englanders - to raise $25,000. This is half of what Patty raised this year in the fight against lung cancer.

You can learn more about Patty and Chris by CLICKING HERE

You can donate by CLICKING HERE