TMZ Sports - Page 50

Brett Favre is issuing a stern warning to Patrick Mahomes ... telling TMZ Sports the quarterback NEEDS to listen to the doctors when it comes to handling his concussion.

The NFL's most legendary ironman explained ... "I played 321 straight games, it kind of goes against everything I stood for when I played. But, you got to be smart. You've got to be smart."

Favre says he's legitimately worried about the Chiefs star's long-term health ... telling us if Mahomes rushes back to the field after suffering that head injury against the Browns on Sunday, it could have dire consequences.

"When you're in the moment, and you're young, you're bulletproof, man," Favre says. "But, I'm 51 years old and I'm wondering what tomorrow will bring because of concussions more than anything."

Mahomes and the Chiefs play the Bills on Sunday ... and many in Kansas City and around the league are hoping the QB can clear concussion protocol and play in the huge matchup.

But, Favre is stressing the need for Patrick to be honest with doctors and coaches about his symptoms ... and to take it all very seriously.

Of course, caring for head injuries is a cause very near to Brett's heart ... he's expressed concern he might have CTE due to all the hits he's suffered.

Tom Brady has more Super Bowl wins, MVPs and TDs than Joe Montana ... but Jerry Rice says he's still taking his former 49ers teammate with the game on the line -- "any day."

It's the age-old debate -- 4th quarter, the team needs a TD, who ya taking? These days, most people say Brady over Montana ... but Rice doesn't see it that way.

“It’s a whole different era, and I would go with Montana any day because he was Joe Cool, and he was in an era where he was not as protected,” Rice said in an interview with 95.7 The Game.

FYI, Montana played from 1979 to 1994 ... a time when football was much more physical -- and passing games weren't nearly as explosive.

"I'm going to go with Joe Montana because, like I said, it was a different era," Rice said.

"Not taking anything away from what's happening today, but you look at the game today, the way it's played, you look at how receivers are protected. I never thought I would see an era where the running back doesn't have to be on the ground for them to stop the play because this, to me, is supposed to be tackle football."

Now, Jerry's probably a little biased ... Montana and Rice are the greatest QB to WR combo in the history of the NFL.

As far as the numbers and awards go ... Brady has the edge.

Tom is a 6x Super Bowl champ, 4x Super Bowl MVP, 3x NFL MVP, 14x Pro Bowler, and has thrown 581 TDs.

Joe's accomplishments aren't too shabby either ... he's a 4x Super Bowl champ, 3x Super Bowl MVP, 2x NFL MVP, 8x Pro Bowler, and threw 273 TDs.

Lamar Jackson is giving a huge shoutout to the Bills Mafia ... thanking the fanbase for flooding his charity with more than $360k in donations after suffering a concussion against Buffalo on Saturday.

Aside from smashing tables and other tailgate debauchery, the Bills Mafia is well-known for coming together to financially support causes tied to their players and opponents over the past few years.

After Lamar went down in the 3rd quarter of the Bills' 17-3 win over the Ravens in the divisional round of the playoffs, fans decided to show support by making donations to the QB's "Blessings in a Backpack" movement, which helps fight childhood hunger.

The former MVP took notice of the move on Monday ... heaping praise on the fans for their awesome gesture.

"Appreciate that #BillsMafia," Jackson said on Twitter. "Means A lot not to only me but those kids as well."

Remember, Bills fans shelled out more than $415k to Andy Dalton's foundation when he led Cincinnati to a Week 17 win over the Ravens in 2017 ... which helped Buffalo secure a playoff spot for the first time in forever.

The Bills Mafia also came together for their own QB when Josh Allen's grandma, Patricia, passed away the day before a game earlier this season ... donating more than $1 MILLION to the John R. Oishei Children’s Hospital in Buffalo in her name.

Robert Griffin III is no longer a backup to Lamar Jackson ... the Baltimore Ravens waived the former Heisman Trophy winner following their loss to the Bills this weekend.

The team made the announcement Monday ... cutting ties with RGIII after he had been on the roster for the past three seasons.

Griffin III never quite had a huge impact in Baltimore, he only played in 14 games, and threw for just 288 yards in those contests.

But, the fact that Griffin III was able to secure a spot on the team for so long says a lot about the 30-year-old ... remember, he was out of football for the entire 2017 season and some wondered if he'd ever get another shot after that.

RGIII was set to be a free agent this offseason before the Ravens' announcement Monday ... but the move could allow him to now find a new home sooner.

The quarterback reflected on the season before roster move was made official Monday ... writing on his social media page, "As year 8 comes to a close, I just want to say thank you to my teammates, the fans, & @Ravens organization."

Kyrie Irving came through with an incredible gesture for George Floyd's family ... with Stephen Jackson revealing the NBA superstar recently bought them a new home.

Jackson -- who personally knew Floyd and referred to him as his "twin" -- vowed to be a father figure for George's 7-year-old daughter, Gianna, after George's death in May 2020.

But, the ex-NBAer says he's not alone in supporting Floyd's family ... joining Etan Thomas' "The Rematch" podcast to praise other huge names who have stepped up in support.

"I'm just continuing to do what I said I was going to do," Jackson said on the podcast. "I said I was going to be my brother's keeper and take care of his daughter and make sure that her next days are her best days."

"A lot of my friends ... Kyrie Irving bought them a house. Lil Wayne's manager bought them a Mercedes-Benz. Barbra Streisand gave them stock in Disney."

As we previously reported, Lil Baby also stepped up to throw a lavish party for Gianna's 7th birthday ... and Jackson says the kind gestures have helped her deal with the tragic loss of her father.

"I think God has definitely blessed her," Stack continued. "Right now, she's doing the best she's ever done. She's happy."

Kevin Porter, Jr.'s time as a Cleveland Cavalier is all but over ... with the NBA player reportedly getting "combative" in a food-throwing incident in the team locker room.

KPJ hasn't played a minute of basketball this season due to "personal reasons" ... but returned late last week after his extended time away from the team.

According to The Athletic, 20-year-old Porter became super pissed when he arrived to the locker room on Friday and noticed recently-acquired Taurean Prince had taken over his locker ... and KPJ's new spot was among the "end of the bench" players.

The report says Porter started to yell ... and even threw food at one point.

Cavs GM Koby Altman and J.B. Bickerstaff tried to defuse the situation to no avail ... with the head coach being described as "shocked and disgusted" by Porter's comments.

Now, the team is washing their hands of the troubled rising star -- with the report saying the relationship will end either via trade or release.

Of course, it's been a rocky start to Porter's NBA career -- the 2019 30th overall pick was arrested in Ohio back in November following a one-car accident.

He faced multiple charges including improper handling of a firearm in a motor vehicle and weed possession ... but eventually, all charges were dismissed.

Porter -- who was also briefly suspended for "conduct issues" during his freshman season at USC -- showed serious upside during his rookie season ... averaging 10 points in 23 minutes per game.

Deshaun Watson is urging fans to NOT march in his honor ... begging Texans supporters on Monday to cancel a rally they had planned to try to keep the QB in Houston.

You'll recall ... Watson is currently in a messy spat with Texans brass -- believing he should have more input in the team's hiring process of its general manager and head coach.

In fact, things have reportedly gotten so contentious ... there's talk Watson could be traded from the team sooner rather than later.

Texans fans have obviously been furious about that ... and they had planned a march near NRG Stadium on Monday to send a message to Houston's ownership and to try to keep Watson on the roster.

But, when Deshaun caught word of the possible rally in his honor ... he pleaded with leaders to not go through with it because of the ongoing pandemic.

"I'm hearing there is a march planned on my behalf in Houston today," Watson said. "Although I am humbled I ask that whoever is organizing the march cancel for the sake of public safety."

"Covid is spreading at a high rate & I don’t want any fans to unnecessarily expose themselves to infection."

New York Yankees slugger Aaron Hicks just pulled off what some golfers only dream of -- ripping a 303-yard hole-in-one on a Par 4 on Sunday ... and Tiger Woods' niece was present for the feat!!!

The 31-year-old has been showing off his serious golf skills recently ... launching a 330-yard drive during a recent trip to Top Golf earlier this month.

Now, the center fielder has proven his talents translate to the links ... by hitting an insane hole-in-one shot at Silverleaf Club in Scottsdale, AZ with his 3 wood.

There's no footage of the accomplishment, but we gotta take Aaron and Cheyenne's word for it ... as the golf legend's niece shared vid of a rightfully stoked Hicks jogging up to the hole, pulling out his ball and giving a fist pump that would make Tiger proud.

It's been nothing but success for non-golf pro athletes on the links recently -- as we previously reported, Wayne Gretzky nailed a hole-in-one on New Year's Eve.

Floyd Mayweather penned an emotional and heartfelt message to his ex-GF and mother of his 3 kids, Josie Harris ... on her 1st birthday following her tragic death.

Mayweather posted a photo of Harris on social media ... and wrote "Happy Birthday to my Angel in Heaven🕊 Gone but never forgotten. RIP."

Floyd also visited Harris' final resting place, posting a photo from a mausoleum with a caption that said ... "I had to come see you for your birthday Josie. R I P my angel."

Harris died in the driveway of her Valencia, CA home in March 2020 ... from what the medical examiner determined was an accidental overdose of prescription medication.

Of course, Mayweather and Harris -- an aspiring actress -- famously had an up-and-down relationship but dated for 15 years ... and had 3 children together.

At the time, Floyd was so broken up about Harris' death (and his uncle and trainer, Roger Mayweather's passing -- only days apart) ... he delayed a possible return to the ring last year.

Ohio State superstar Justin Fields is moving on from the Buckeyes -- the QB just announced he'll enter the NFL Draft ... and it begs the question, is New York his next destination?!

The Jets are slated to pick #2 overall in April's draft ... and some believe they could take Fields and move on from Sam Darnold.

Of course, Jets star Quinnen Williams told TMZ Sports this month that he would NOT go that route -- preferring Alabama's Devonta Smith instead.

If the Jets do pass, Fields doesn't figure to fall too far -- he's considered either the 2nd- or 3rd-best QB in the entire draft.

As for leaving OSU, Fields was emotional in making the announcement Monday ... thanking his coach, his teammates and Buckeye nation for embracing him after he transferred to the school from Georgia.

"To my teammates, I will miss you more than you know," Fields said in his lengthy goodbye note. "I hope I have made the same impact on you that you have made on me. The bonds formed these last two years will last a lifetime; in you, I will always have brothers."

Tom Brady beat a Brees and then scored with one later ... 'cause after the Buccaneers superstar bounced Drew Brees from the playoffs Sunday -- he threw a TD to the QB's son!

The cool moment all went down an hour or so after the Bucs beat the Saints in the Superdome in an NFC Divisional Round game ... with Brady and Brees having what appeared to be a pretty emotional talk.

Brady gave Brees (who had just finished likely the final game of his historic career) a handshake and a long hug ... and then suddenly Brees' son came up to the two.

The young Brees handed a ball to Tom -- and TB12 knew exactly what to do with it!!!

The Tampa Bay signal-caller fired a perfect strike into the corner of the endzone ... and the little Brees came down with a pretty impressive catch!

"That a boy!" Tom told the kid. "We could have used you tonight. Got to get that ball in the endzone!"

Brees' wife then gave Tom a hug ... and Brady provided some strong words of wisdom to Drew's other son -- "Be nice to your sister." Tom then bolted for the locker room.

Cleveland Browns linebacker Mack Wilson shoulda been booted from the game over his hit on Patrick Mahomes ... so says the superstar QB's mother, who called the play "trash football."

Mahomes suffered a concussion and was knocked out in the 3rd quarter of the Chiefs vs. Browns divisional round game on Sunday ... after Wilson brought down the QB on a run play.

Mahomes' mom, Randi, was FURIOUS over the play ... calling for Wilson to be ejected from the game.

"#51 Wilson that’s some trash football leading with helmet, pulling his head and pushing helmet," Randi tweeted Sunday. "why are you not thrown out!?? Come on NFL"

FWIW -- Wilson spoke out after the game ... saying he's NEVER been a dirty player, and wished Mahomes a speedy recovery.

"Never been a dirty player in my life," Wilson tweeted after the game. "I just try my best to play fast and make plays. Don’t try to insult me & keep the threats to yourself."

Forget Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields ... Jets star Quinnen Williams tells TMZ Sports his squad should PASS on a QB in April's NFL draft -- and take Devonta Smith instead!!!

"I'm wishin'!" Williams says. "I'm saying it right now, I'm wishin'!"

Of course, NY will likely have the option to take the star 'Bama wideout at #2 overall in just a few months ... though most pundits believe the team should take a QB and move on from Sam Darnold with the pick.

But, when we spoke with Williams after his former Alabama team won the National Championship last week, he told us he'd prefer to keep Sam and select this year's Heisman Trophy winner instead.

"Devonta Smith got that 'Bama in him," Williams says. "We need someone with that. Man, he's amazing."

The selection would be fairly historic ... wideouts almost NEVER go in the top two picks -- in fact, only two have been selected in the top two since 2000 (Calvin Johnson in 2007 and Charles Rogers in 2002).

According to Williams, though, this is the perfect time to make it happen again.

"Any team that gets him -- not even the Jets -- any team that gets him they'll be getting a dominant player," Williams says. "And, you can see that now."

We're pretty sure Williams ain't wrong here -- Smith was incredible for Alabama this season, catching 117 passes for 1,856 receiving yards and 23 receiving touchdowns.

"If we get him," Williams says, "he's going to be a dynamic attribute for Sam."

Marshall Faulk says he's straight-up "worried" about Trevor Lawrence's possible future under Urban Meyer in Jacksonville ... telling TMZ Sports he thinks the Jags' new coach sucks at developing pro QBs.

"Outside of Alex Smith," the NFL legend says, "this man hasn't developed a quarterback that's playing in the NFL right now."

Faulk added, "I'm worried for Trevor Lawrence."

Of course, the Clemson superstar is not a Jaguar yet ... but damn-near everyone involved in the draft process believes Meyer will select the QB at #1 overall in the spring.

Faulk, though, says that could be a kiss of death for Lawrence's pro career ... pointing out Meyer's college QBs haven't had much success at all in the pros.

"He had some really good attempts with, I'm talking, top, four-star, five-star guys when he was at Ohio State and at Florida," Faulk says. "There's something to that."

Meyer's career list of notable starting college quarterbacks includes Alex Smith, Chris Leak, Tim Tebow, Braxton Miller, Cardale Jones, J.T. Barrett and Dwayne Haskins.

To Faulk's point, none of the above, aside from Smith, has done much of anything in the NFL.

"You put that together," Faulk tells us.

Faulk, though, thinks there's at least SOME chance Lawrence doesn't end up in Jacksonville -- the former Rams superstar says if he had the Jags' top pick, he'd pass on Lawrence and try to trade the selection for Deshaun Watson.

Netflix left a controversial episode from one of MTV's most popular shows on the cutting room floor ... an episode infamous for some severe bullying.

Here's the deal ... the streaming giant just added 2 seasons of MTV's 'Real World/Road Rules Challenge,' but fans will instantly notice something's missing ... some behind-the-scenes clips featuring 3 female cast members going after another female contestant.

The episode was titled "To Hell and Back: Hot Gossip From The Inferno 2" ... and the troubling scene showed Veronica, Rachel and Tina ganging up on Tonya Cooley by snapping nude photos of her while she was sleeping.

They later showed those pics to other houseguests. That episode was the show's finale in 2005, and aired instead of the usual end-of-season reunions.

As for why Netflix cut it? Well, there's the obvious ... 2005 was just a different time, and things that might have been seen as funny or entertaining back then, just don't fly today.

We reached out to Netflix and MTV for an explanation, but neither responded.

Pro Football Hall of Fame Finalist LeRoy Butler says there's a very good reason he belongs in Canton ... Deion Sanders and Rod Woodson are enshrined.

Prime, SA, and Woodson are members of the NFL's '90s All-Decade team -- along with Bruce Smith, Reggie White, Cortez Kennedy, John Randle, Junior Seau, Derrick Thomas, and Kevin Greene -- ALL who are members of the Hall.

Butler is the only guy on the All-Decade squad who isn't in Canton ... and he tells TMZ Sports that's a helluva reason to put him in.

"I really would love to be in the Hall of Fame this particular year, 2021. And, plus, it's a little embarrassing to be the only All-Decade member, 1st team, not in the Hall of Fame."

Butler says some of the other players have bigger names ... but when it comes to the football field, he contributed as much as the other HOF'ers.

"It's like 'generic' and 'brand.' You get Woodson, brand, put him in! Manning, brand. Generic, LeRoy Butler. But, I do the same thing as them. I'm just cheaper. I think they should put me in to say we close out the '90s to the 2000s. Done, start the new decade! So, I just pray."

BTW, there's a reason LeRoy made the All-Decade team ... he had a great, 12 season career in Green Bay. He made 1st team All-Pro 4 times, 4 Pro Bowls, and won a Super Bowl with Brett Favre and the Packers in 1997.

Butler also breaks down his foray into the liquor biz ... 'cause he just launched a new vodka, aptly named Leap Spirits.

Remember, Butler was the 1st player to Lambeau Leap back in 1993.