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NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says the NFL is exploring ways to have fans at the Super Bowl -- specifically health care workers.

Goodell fired off a letter to Rob Higgins -- President of the Tampa Bay Super Bowl LV Host Committee -- informing him of the league's plans to reward the front line workers who have busted their asses during the COVID pandemic.

"We are currently discussing with public health officials our desire to invite vaccinated health care workers to the Super Bowl as our guests," Goodell says in a letter obtained by NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

"Subject to their approval and in consultation with your team, we aim to do this in a safe and responsible way."

Goodell says putting vaccinated health care workers in the stands for the biggest game of the year would "help promote the importance of vaccination and appropriate health practices including wearing masks in public settings."

The plans aren't set in stone yet -- but it seems Goodell is optimistic.

He concluded his letter by heaping more praise on health care workers.

"We hope that in some small way, this initiative will inspire our country and recognize these true American heroes as we look forward to a better and healthier year."

People getting the COVID-19 vaccine are walking away with a nifty little reminder to come back for seconds, and some important details about what's being injected into their bodies.

TMZ has obtained a COVID-19 vaccination record card somebody was given after getting the new Pfizer-BioNtech therapeutic out of New Jersey. It's CDC official, and very similar to the immunization cards children often get to keep track of vaccinations.

In this case, the card is very specific ... and only tracks whether someone has their full 2 doses -- something you need to have in order for the new vaccine to work effectively. There's also a reminder section on the back, telling you to come back in 3 weeks.

We're told the person who got this card was also given a Pfizer fact sheet, which explains what the vaccine's all about, and what exactly it will or won't do for you as far as fighting off coronavirus. Check it out, very interesting literature.

As you can see, the fact sheet notes the vaccine may help prevent the disease -- key word there is "may." It also says there's no full-proof vaccine out yet that's been fully approved by the FDA to for sure ward off COVID ... and they make that crystal clear.

There's a lot of good info here to educate people on whether getting this specific vaccine is right for them -- including potential side effects, possible allergic reactions, ingredients and a bit of history on who went through clinical trials.

Dr. Anthony Fauci says Santa Claus is immune from the coronavirus, but the jolly guy is taking no chances before Christmas -- he just got the COVID-19 vaccine.

Santa came down from the North Pole for an unannounced stop Wednesday at Southern Hills Hospital & Medical Center in Las Vegas, where he got the shot.

As you can see, Santa wasn't exactly keeping it low pro ... rocking his regular work gear for the occasion.

So, why Vegas? It is pretty warm for a guy dressed like this. Well, the hospital's honchos say they reached out to St. Nick out of concern for his health ahead of his globe-trotting on Christmas Eve.

Let's face it ... this guy can't risk taking a sick day on his ONE workday of the year.

Remember, Dr. Fauci said SC has "innate immunity" from COVID-19.

Peruvian cops take their sting operations quite seriously, especially around the holidays, as you can see in this drug bust featuring Saint Nick ... bashing in a door with a hammer!!!

This drug raid in Lima was captured on camera, and it shows 2 Peruvian police officers disguised as Santa and an elf literally busting into the home of a suspected drug dealer in town. Looks like they mighta been right, as they found tons of weed.

Imagine how deep undercover this duo had to go to make this collar. If it required sitting in as a mall Santa for even one day, they deserve medals!

BTW, apparently, this police force has gone undercover before as homeless people and street sweepers. In any case, their latest operation made for a dramatic payoff. It's not everyday ya get to see Santa and an elf hop out of a van, break down and a door ... and leave with a sack full of ganja.

In addition to the marijuana ... cops say they found guns and drug paraphernalia.

Jose Canseco is REALLY pissed at Logan Paul over the breakup with his daughter -- suggesting something scandalous went down behind-the-scenes.

The ex-MLB star isn't spilling all of the tea ... but says the split between Logan and supermodel Josie Canseco earlier this year "left me with a bit of a bad taste in my mouth."

Now, 56-year-old Jose wants to FIGHT the 25-year-old YouTube star to defend his family's honor.

... and yeah, Jose insists this is for real.

"I actually met him when my daughter and Logan came down to Vegas," Jose said this week to Sports Talk Chicago on AM 1530 WCKG.

"He seemed like a very nice young kid -- to me, seemed a bit on the arrogant side. But, then all of the sudden they broke up."

"I gotta give you the final details, they will come up .. but you know, it left me with a little bit of a bad taste in my mouth."

Once Jose floated the idea of boxing Logan on social media back in November, Logan replied, "No problem. I love smashing Cansecos."

Yeesh.

Now, Jose is calling for LP to back up his words ... saying he'll be waiting for him after his exhibition with Floyd Mayweather next month.

"Get ready, this is real. This is not a joke ... If I hit him, he's going down."

Jose also says he's not intimidated by Logan's age and boxing experience -- saying, "Even though I'm 56-years-old, I do have some martial arts and celebrity fighting experience."

Jose even references his 2009 fight against South Korean MMA star Hong-man Choi -- a 7'2" monster who beat down Jose in just over a minute when they squared off.

"After fighting a guy who's 7'2" and 400 pounds, these guys look like shrimps to me," Jose says.

As for his strategy, Jose says he will channel his inner Rocky Balboa ... using 3 words to finish Paul off -- "Blunt force trauma."

Adam Carolla supports the recall effort gaining steam against Gov. Gavin Newsom -- because he says the guy's a tyrant, and that Californians should snap out of his BS spell.

We talked to the comedian Tuesday in Burbank, CA, where he was about to head into a restaurant his friend owns for a little sit-down meal ... almost out of protest, it seems. It's pretty clear ... Adam thinks the new shutdown orders are ridiculous, and he explains why.

In his eyes, there's just no proof to connect outdoor dining to massive outbreaks of coronavirus cases -- he thinks Newsom's just throwing crap at a wall and doing what he wants ... behavior of an unhinged king, which Adam says Newsom is not.

He also speaks to Californians, telling them to stop acting like sheep by blindly taking orders ... without thinking about the logic, or lack thereof, behind them.

Adam then pivots to a recall effort that's been picking steam in recent days. It's a grassroots movement started by people who are furious with Newsom over his closing of small businesses -- especially restaurants -- as well as what many call hypocritical behavior, as he was recently spotted maskless at a ritzy indoor shindig in Napa.

Might sound crazy, but the petition already has more than half the necessary signatures needed to get the issue on a ballot soon -- and word is Newsom's camp is nervous.

'Insecure' star Kendrick Sampson says police brutality is a global issue ... and he has some video evidence after a scary encounter in Cartagena, Colombia.

The actor and BLM activist posted a video he says shows a cop detaining him, punching him and pulling out his gun. The officer even cocks the weapon, and appears to point it at Kendrick.

The video -- recorded by someone across the street -- ends there, but Kendrick claims he was taken away in handcuffs.

Kendrick, who spearheaded several recent protests in L.A., says the police in Colombia had been hounding him nonstop -- he claims this was his 6th encounter with them in 5 days.

The caption to the video he posted included, "It happens to Black Colombians often. I’m told stopping is policy but what is NOT is they reached down my underwear aggressively, slap my arms 5 times hard, punch me in my jaw and pull his gun on me. He then cuffed me and dragged me through the streets."

It's unclear when exactly this encounter went down ... but the video was first posted by a friend of his on Tuesday. Kendrick says the police held him for nearly 10 hours before letting him go.

Took long enough ... but Major League Baseball will finally recognize the Negro Leagues as a part of the Major Leagues.

MLB Commish Rob Manfred said the move will correct a "longtime oversight in the game’s history."

So, what does the distinction mean? A lot, actually.

Every single one of the 3,400 players who competed in the Negro Leagues from 1920 to 1948 will now be recognized by MLB as Major League ballplayers.

"Accordingly, the statistics and records of these players will become a part of Major League Baseball’s history," MLB announced.

It's a huge deal ... some of the greatest players of all-time were relegated to the Negro Leagues because of baseball's racist policy against Black players.

Of course, Jackie Robinson finally broke MLB's color barrier in 1947 ... and several players followed shortly after including Larry Doby, Roy Campanella, Satchel Paige, Willie Mays and more.

"All of us who love baseball have long known that the Negro Leagues produced many of our game’s best players, innovations and triumphs against a backdrop of injustice," Manfred said.

"We are now grateful to count the players of the Negro Leagues where they belong: as Major Leaguers within the official historical record."

MLB honored the 100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues on August 16, 2020 -- with all MLB players, managers, coaches and umpires wearing a symbolic Negro Leagues 100th Anniversary logo patch during that day’s games.

A Denny's employee is fed up with having to deal with anti-maskers -- 2 of them pushed her to the point, she threw down her metaphorical apron and quit on the spot.

This apparently went down at an Illinois Denny's ... a hostess at the front counter greets a couple of dudes looking to be seated. Only problem is they weren't wearing face coverings and refused to do so.

The guys claimed to have a legit exemption, but the hostess tells them they have to put masks on no matter what in their establishment.

That's where things get testy ... the guys invoke the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and cite their religion -- and that's when the hostess slams her menus down and declares she can't deal with this and starts storming out.

She tells the guys she doesn't wanna have to deal with anti-maskers anymore, and her manager tries to calm her down ... before laying down the law with the customers.

Joe Biden's inauguration ceremony will be covered by a security company, that Uncle Sam is paying handsomely, to keep the President-elect safe -- and by the looks of everything they're equipped to do, he'll be in good hands.

TMZ obtained federal procurement docs that show the Secret Service has hired a company called Showcall Security Services to help out with the inauguration in January. The company scored a $7.5 million contract for the job ... and it sounds like they'll be worth every dime of taxpayer money.

Turns out, a division of Showcall, named Checkmate, is what'll be deployed here -- and a glance at their specialties shows why they cost a pretty penny. Checkmate boasts "temporary deployable security assets" that create "hardened perimeters," which can stop vehicle-borne threats and attempted weapons hand-offs of people who get past checkpoints

Checkmate also notes they design and provide "robust access control programs and cutting edge surveillance and threat detection systems" that use data analytics -- so top-notch stuff.

But, wait ... there's more.

Other services Checkmate offers for large-scale events include (but aren't limited to) ... anti-scale fencing, a mobile command post, all types of tactical barriers, golf carts and gators, light towers, traffic control, mobile power generation, tenting and perhaps most useful of all ... portable bathrooms!!!

Tom Cruise takes COVID protocols very seriously on the set of the new 'Mission Impossible,' and tore into crew members for breaking the rules ... telling them they'd be "f**king gone" if it happens again.

Tom was on the U.K. set of 'MI 7' when someone recorded his expletive-laced tirade ... sparked by seeing 2 crew members standing within 6 feet of each other around a monitor ... according to The Sun, which first posted the audio.

It might sound like a minor infraction, but Tom makes it clear he and the entire production can't afford ANY slip ups when it comes to COVID safety. He raged at them, saying the cast and crew need to be the "gold standard" when it comes to filming safely.

With a ton of f-bombs -- and even one instance of calling the culprits "motherf**kers" -- Tom let it be known, in no uncertain terms, everyone he was pissed off at. The rant is reminiscent of Christian Bale's on a 'Terminator' flick -- but the root of Tom's anger is much different.

He explained the 'MI' production is under pressure from Hollywood -- specifically the studios and insurance companies backing his movie ... which, no doubt, want to avoid a COVID-19 outbreak. As Tom puts it, all of Hollywood is watching to see if they can safely pull off filming a blockbuster in multiple countries.

After basically yelling it's my way or the highway, Cruise summed up what's at stake -- "That’s it! No apologies. You can tell it to the people that are losing their f**king homes because our industry is shut down. It’s not going to put food on their table or pay for their college education."

Word is Tom has taken it upon himself to do safety inspections on the set, and literally goes around making sure everything is up to snuff as far safety and approved protocols.

Kamala Harris knows better than anyone the historic moment that's about to take place after she takes her oath of office -- not just for her, but also for her our nation's first Second Gentleman.

The VP-Elect talked about the emotions she's feeling as she becomes the first woman to hold the office ... and the word that seems to be ringing in her head is "responsibility."

Kamala told Robin Roberts on 'GMA' ... saying she'll be thinking about the responsibility that comes with the job, and also about her mother. She said, "I was raised by a mother who said that to me all the time. She said, ‘You may be the first to do many things, make sure you’re not the last.’ That’s how I feel about this moment."

Adam Levine and Behati Prinsloo are celebrating a partnership with Ferrari that raised 6-figures for Save the Children, and raised Adam's heart rate with a thrilling test-drive.

The Maroon 5 frontman recently took a spin in Ferrari's new coupe, the Roma, and posted a series of videos showing just how psyched he was behind the wheel ... as he should be, and not just because of the car.

Adam and his supermodel wife teamed up to bring one of the first Romas to the United States for a charity auction. The stunning whip has a price tag around $220,000, but it went for $750,000 in the Sotheby's auction!!! All proceeds went to Save the Children.

Adam owns a bunch of classic and exotic cars, but was NOT the lucky buyer at auction. However, Ferrari did let him and Behati experience the Roma during what looks like a ride around SoCal.

The Roma has 611 horsepower and a top speed of about 200 mph, and Adam put those ponies to work ... getting up to 182 km/h, or about 110 mph.

As for the charity auction, Save the Children has worked tirelessly during COVID-19 to make sure underprivileged kids have books, supplies and virtual learning tools -- so the money is certainly going to a great place.

Struggling to make plans for New Year's Eve? Mariah Carey's got ya covered with this SICK dome up for grabs through Airbnb.

The vacation rental company is offering this unbelievable 1-night stay under the New Year's Eve Ball at Times Square. The lucky person who books this, along with their guest, will stay on Nasdaq's outdoor terrace ... where they'll sleep and chill inside their very own geodesic dome, with panoramic views of the crystal ball and the Big Apple for that matter.

But, wait ... there's more!!!

Mariah's virtual hosting duties include her serenading the lucky guests. Plus, there's also a $5,000 shopping credit for shops along Fifth Avenue or local Times Square shops.

And, while the world counts down to the end of an awful 2020, guests will enjoy access to an indoor lounge where they can relax, drink some bubbly and watch the world celebrate on TV. Dinner will be provided by a private chef. And, how's this for a cool memento ... a sparkly piece of the crystal featured in this year's Waterford Crystal Times Square NYE Ball design.

This all sounds incredible, for sure. The 1-night booking's just $21 ... but there's a catch.

It's on a first-come, first-serve basis but only open to guests who can prove they're NYC residents. They must also currently live in the same household and must meet COVID health and safety criteria ... like documentation proving they're COVID free.

The frontline healthcare workers getting the first batch of coronavirus vaccines in America say things are going smoothly -- no symptoms or side effects, so far.

The first people to get the shot in New York and North Carolina are all telling us the same thing -- it was like a normal tetanus or flu shot and, most importantly, they haven't had any surprises.

Sandra Lindsay, the intensive-care nurse who got the first shot, Monday morning in New York, tells TMZ ... she feels fantastic. It's early, for sure, but just to give you an idea of what you might experience, Sandra says she's had no fever, no muscle aches, no muscle weakness -- and she's trusting the science.

Sarah, who is Black, says she was never apprehensive about getting the vaccine, despite a majority of African-Americans saying they don't trust it and won't get it.

As we reported, Offset conveyed that exact sentiment when we spoke to him about possibly get vaccinated when it's available.

Still, Sandra told us the alternatives -- death or suffering from COVID-19 -- are way worse than getting the shot.

The first person vaccinated Monday in North Carolina, Dr. Katie Passaretti, tells us her vaccination was like other ones she's had in the past. She's only experienced some muscle pain in her upper arm, where the shot was administered ... and she says that's pretty standard.

Like Sandra, Adam Berman works at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center and also got vaccinated Monday. While he understands the skepticism some people have, he's imploring the public to trust scientists ... and get the shot.

Sandra, Adam and Dr. Passaretti also tell us their vaccinated co-workers are also doing great too, with nothing more than some sore arms.

Don't worry ... Brandon Moreno's nuts are okay!!

This, after the UFC star took a ferocious kick to the gonads from Deiveson Figueiredo at UFC 256 -- a shot that was so powerful Moreno was dry heaving in the Octagon.

It's been 4 days since that insane fight between Moreno and Figueiredo -- an instant classic that was judged a majority draw -- and you can see the bruises all over Moreno's face.

So, we had to ask ... how his "twins" were doing after that ferocious low blow, and Brandon filled us in.

“In that moment, it was very painful. Was very, very painful because he throws a really, really hard direct to there. I don't say it was intentional, but man it was a nasty kick directly to my balls," Moreno says.

"I think this the first time when a referee told me if I wanted to rest a little bit, my first time saying, 'Yes, please I need this moment.'"

Naturally, one of the first things Moreno's wife, Shirley, asked about after the fight was her husband's junk.

"My wife asked me the same, 'Hey, you fine?' Like, 'Yeah baby, no problem.'"

There's more ... Moreno says he doesn't feel any sympathy for Figueiredo after learning his opponent was hospitalized until 2 AM on fight day with a bad stomach infection.

"Before the fight, I don't know anything about [Deiveson] being sick. He was in the hospital, but man, in this world of Martial Arts, that is very normal. I had like two fights in the company, I was very sick to my stomach, but I never said nothing because it's my problem."

In fact, Moreno thinks Deiveson is using the medical situation as an excuse for not winning the fight.