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Ezekiel Elliott beat up his girlfriend 3 times in the same week ... and there are photos that prove it ... this according to the NFL. Elliott is facing a 6 game suspension with these charges.

The league laid out its case against Elliott in a letter to the Dallas Cowboys running back detailing a week of violence and terror against Tiffany Thompson that began on July 17, 2016.

INCIDENT #1

On July 17, the NFL says Elliott attacked Thompson at the Canvasback Lane apartments in Columbus, Ohio.

"You used physical force that caused injuries to Ms. Thompson's arms, neck and shoulders."

INCIDENT #2

On July 19, the NFL says there was another altercation at the Canvasback Lane apartments.

"You used physical force that caused injuries to Ms. Thompson's face, arms, wrists and hands."

INCIDENT #3

On July 21, the NFL says there was a 3rd incident at the Canvasback Lane apartments.

"You used physical force that caused injuries to Ms. Thompson's face, neck, arms knee and hips."

The league says it went to prosecutors to find out why Elliott was not charged with a crime. The NFL was told, "We never concluded that she was lying to us ... we generally believed her for all of the incidents."

Prosecutors had previously said there was "conflicting and inconsistent information across all incidents, resulting in concern regarding the sufficiency of the evidence to support the filing of criminal charges."

The standard for prosecution is much higher than the standard for the NFL to mete out discipline.

Ezekiel Elliott has been suspended for 6 games following the NFL's yearlong domestic violence investigation into the Dallas Cowboys star, the league confirms.

The league says the investigation found "substantial and persuasive evidence" that Zeke engaged in physical violence against the accuser.

The league also told Elliott if he violates league policy ever again he could possibly be BANNED from the NFL for life.

Zeke was accused of assaulting his ex-girlfriend 5 different times in 6 days back in July 2016.

Cops investigated the allegations but decided there wasn't enough evidence to prosecute.

The NFL conducted its own investigation and apparently felt there was enough evidence to suspend him.

The NFL issued a statement saying, "Over the course of the last year, the league conducted an extensive investigation. League investigators interviewed more than a dozen witnesses, including Ms. Tiffany Thompson, who had alleged multiple instances of physical violence in July 2016, and Mr. Elliott."

"The league also consulted with medical experts. League investigators examined all available evidence, including photographic and digital evidence, thousands of text messages and other records of electronic communications."

The NFL says Roger Goodell consulted with 4 external advisors before deciding punishment.

Elliott denied any wrongdoing -- but the accuser has maintained he attacked her. In fact, she put up a statement last month doubling down on the allegations against Zeke and saying people like her need to speak up and stop domestic violence.

Elliott's made headlines for all the wrong reasons this offseason -- he was caught exposing a woman's bare breast at a St. Patrick's Day parade and was accused of attacking a man in a Dallas bar in July.

Adam Schefter says the NFL factored in the St. Patrick's Day incident when meting out punishment.

Zeke wasn't arrested or charged with any crime for either incident ... but it's been reported the league would take these incidents into consideration when determining his punishment.

The news will undoubtedly come as a shock to Cowboys owner, Jerry Jones, who just told us THIS WEEK that Zeke would NOT be suspended.

The reign of The Rock's famous bull tattoo is OVER.

Long live the reign of his new one.

He calls it "Evolution of the Bull" -- 22 hours of tattoo work to cover up the famous bull head he's sported on his arm ever since he burst on to the scene as a WWE superstar.

But Rock -- real name Dwayne Johnson -- says he decided to change his body part to reflect his own personal history.

"From the cracks and heavy damage in the bone representing life's hard lessons I've learned over the years. Just like scars and wrinkles - I'm so grateful to have 'em because they're earned. To the horns, not pointing up or out to the side, but pointing straight ahead representing relentless energy and forward progress."

Rock says the eye tells the story of a "disruptive positive energy always ready to dent the universe."

Good for Rock. It's his body. He can do what he wants.

But we kinda liked the old one.

His jersey's got the Swoosh ... but Lonzo Ball says he's still a BBB guy at heart -- and the proof is on his feet.

The L.A. Lakers rookie was at an NBA rookie photo shoot with teammate, Kyle Kuzma, when they started showing off their new Lakers uniforms, made by Nike.

That's when Lonzo told the camera, "I know you see the Nike jersey on ... it's still Triple B's though!"

He then pointed down to his $495 Big Baller Brand shoes.

Daddy likey.

Swaggy P feels the same way we all do about Ice Cube trying to get Kobe Bryant in the BIG3 -- make it happen, bro!!!!

Earlier this week, Cube said he's been talking to Kobe and he's hoping he can convince the Black Mamba to join the league for Season 2.

We know there are a handful of ex-NBA stars interested in joining next year -- including Lamar Odom -- but Kobe would bring the league to a whole new level.

Meantime, Nick Young is clearly a fan of the 3-on-3 league -- and says he'll be at Staples Center for the games this weekend.

Michael Irvin says the "special treatment" the Dallas Cowboys get from the NFL is the kind of special treatment "you don't want" -- because their high profile status makes them big, fat targets.

We started off talking about Ezekiel Elliott and asked #88 if thinks the RB will get suspended as a result of the domestic violence investigation.

That's when our guy asked if Cowboys players will sometimes get a pass from Commish Roger Goodell because they're "America's Team."

"A pass?!" Irvin said ... "The kind of special treatment the Cowboys get is the kind of special treatment you don't want."

If Mitch Trubisky isn't the Chicago Bears starting QB in Week 1, "You've got problems" -- so says Bears legend Mike Ditka.

To say Da Coach was impressed with the rookie's preseason debut Thursday night is a gross understatement ... Ditka believes it's TRUB OR CONSEQUENCES!

"What I saw out of Trubiksy for a rookie in his first game I thought was outstanding."

Trub -- the #2 pick in the draft -- went 18-25 for 166 yards and a TD after replacing starting QB Mike Glennon who went 2-8 for 20 yards and an interception.

Ditka thinks the decision is obvious ... and says Mitch made a better first impression than guys like Tom Brady and Fran Tarkenton.

Tennis superstar Victoria Azerenka is furious a judge has given her a real-life Sophie's choice -- tennis or her kid -- that is making her drop out the US open.

The former #1 player in the world is locked in a nasty dispute with Billy McKeague -- the father of her 8-month-old son, Leo. The two split back in July.

Here's the problem ... McKeague filed custody papers in L.A. (where Victoria has a home) and the case has gone to a judge who told Azerenka she's not allowed to take the child out of California while the custody trial rages ... and it's not going to end until October at the earliest.

The dilemma -- the US Open kicks off August 28 in New York. Victoria will not leave her child -- whom she's been breastfeeding until a month ago -- with McKeague because she doesn't believe he's capable of caring for the kid.

Her attorney, "Disso Queen" Laura Wasser, told the judge her client is more than willing to buy a plane ticket for McKeague and put him up in a hotel for the 2-week tournament, but the judge said no.

Wasser also told the judge her client already has a valid custody order from Belarus, the country where Victoria, Leo and and Billy are all residents, so it should be game, set, match. But for some reason the judge won't defer to the Belarus court.

Casey Affleck must have forgotten he was at an airport and not home plate -- 'cause he casually tried bringing a baseball bat onto a plane.

We got Casey Thursday at LAX rushing to catch a flight, with bag and bat in hand ... and a ton of confidence he'd get through TSA.

When we ask if he really thinks he'd get past with the equipment, he says we'll see ... and see we did.

After what looks like several earnest attempts to persuade, Casey gets a definitive answer with one head movement.

Casey could have checked the bat, but decided to surrender it, and scurried to his plane.

Paige VanZant won't let a massive bloody wound keep her from fighting -- she's already stitched up the gash on her foot and got back on her grind.

The UFC superstar opened up a gnarly hole in her foot on Wednesday -- but one day later, she was back working out ... hitting a set of crunches with a fresh set of stitches.

VanZant is rumored to fight Jessica Eye at UFC 216 in October -- and at this point, it doesn't appear she's gonna let the injury keep her out of the Octagon.

Pro bodybuilder Rich Piana was placed into a medically induced coma this week after suffering a medical emergency at his Florida home, law enforcement sources tell TMZ Sports.

46-year-old Piana has competed and won several bodybuilding competitions over the years -- including Mr. California -- and has become an Instagram sensation, racking up more than 1 million followers.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... emergency personnel responded to a possible overdose call at Piana's home on Monday afternoon. When they arrived, Piana was unresponsive and was transported to a nearby hospital where he was placed into a medically induced coma.

Unclear how he's doing now. We're working on the story.

Tiger Woods has broken his silence about his dating life to let everyone know he broke up with his hot blonde girlfriend, Kristin Smith ... last year.

Andrea Bocelli doesn't need to be able to see to enjoy the sea ... and doesn't give a damn how he looks as long as he's having fun.

The famous Italian tenor was spotted windsurfing while vacationing at Elba Island, Italy Wednesday ... not letting his disability get in the way of good time on the water.

Bocelli's known for partaking in action sports, and if you think a blind man windsurfing is impressive ... you should see him fly down the slopes.

Taylor Swift took the stand to testify this week in her butt groping trial -- but from the way she was drawn in court sketches ... you'd never know it was her.

Sketches show Taylor in what appears to be a floral top, under an updo with loose curls ... keyword here is appears.

Point is ... the sketch is pretty bad, and not very flattering. The guy she's accusing of literally latching on to her ass, David Mueller, got a more neutral side profile sketch ... where he was seen with a hand over his face as Taylor testified.

Still ... neither are as bad as the infamous Tom Brady sketch that was drawn during his Deflategate hearing. The jury definitely ain't out on that one.

10:30 AM PT -- Randolph allegedly had roughly 2 POUNDS of weed on him at the time of the arrest. We're told the weed was in a "large backpack."

That's a lot of weed.

8:02 AM PT -- TMZ Sports shot Randolph leaving jail moments ago ... with a big smile on his face!

Randolph didn't seem concerned one bit and casually walked to a waiting ride.

NBA star Zach Randolph was arrested in L.A. on Wednesday night -- igniting a crazy disturbance that required cops to call in the cavalry for backup, TMZ Sports has learned.

LAPD officers were called to the Nickerson Gardens area in L.A. around 10 PM -- and when they arrived, cops found a large crowd of people smoking, playing loud music and blocking the roadway.

Law enforcement sources tell us 3 people were seen grabbing their waistbands and running -- so cops went after them.

Three people were detained -- including Randolph, who was eventually arrested for possession of marijuana with intent to sell, A FELONY. We're told the "intent to sell" part was due to the large amount of weed found.

Another man who was arrested was an ex-con in possession of a gun, law enforcement sources say.

After the arrests, we're told things got crazy -- the crowd became unruly and LAPD had to call for backup.

We're told 6 cop cars were vandalized -- tires slashed and windows busted -- and cops formed a battle line to restore order.

In the end, cops recovered 2 guns, drugs, a significant amount of cash and 2 vehicles were impounded -- though it's unclear if any of those things belonged to Randolph.

Randolph is listed at 6'9", 260 on his booking sheet, which also says bail was set at $20,000.

FYI, Randolph spent years with the Memphis Grizzlies before signing a brand new 2-year, $24 million contract with the Sacramento Kings.

We've reached out to Zach's rep for comment -- so far, no word back.

Story developing ...

Ice Cube says he's been in touch with Kobe Bryant about joining the BIG3 ... and he's gunning to get the Black Mamba back on the court as early as next year!!

The rap legend and 3-on-3 league commish talked to KTLA Morning News Thursday about his talks with the retired Lakers superstar ... and Cube says he's hoping Kobe will get the competitive itch again.

This is the second BIG3 honcho to publicly pull for Mamba ... 'cause Allen Iverson told TMZ Sports back in February it was his dream to play with Kobe.

Speaking of the Answer ... Cube also talks about suspending the ex-Sixers superstar for bailing on his stop in Dallas last month.