Cincinnati Bengals

The owner of the Cincinnati Bengals is telling fans he knows the team "took a risk" in drafting Joe Mixon -- but he's hoping Joe is a changed man who won't screw up again.

Mike Brown -- who's also the team president -- wrote an open letter to fans who have expressed concerns about Cinci's decision to pick a player who brutalized a woman in 2012.

In the letter, Brown points out Mixon's upside as an athlete -- while condemning the "regrettable deed."

"In making our decision, we took a risk," Brown says ... "In this case, the risk has an upside as well as a downside."

"We believe Joe has put this behind him and that he can turn into the player and community member that creates a plus for Cincinnati. We are going to do everything in our power to make this happen."

"Our hope is that time will prove that this opportunity is deserved, and perhaps -- if given a chance -- Joe can write a chapter in Cincinnati sports history that both he and Cincinnati can be proud of."

Here's the letter in its entirety:

"In the NFL draft last Friday, the Cincinnati Bengals selected a very talented football player who did a terrible thing his freshman year at college.

The player – Joe Mixon – is a top level football player by everyone’s account. Joe’s regrettable deed was that he struck a young woman, another student, shortly after arriving on campus in Norman, Oklahoma, three years ago.

Joe and this young woman recently met in person, came to terms with the incident, and they agreed to resolve their differences so they could move forward with their lives. While the circumstances that led up to the incident are unclear – what is clear is that it is unacceptable for a man to strike a woman.

Since the incident three years ago, Joe was suspended by the football team, pleaded guilty in court, and accepted the consequences of his actions. He later went on to become a good citizen in Norman, a popular teammate, a player respected by his coaches, and one of the most talented players in college football.

The Bengals take pride in our hometown and want to provide winning football on the field and successful players off the field. That is the reason we drafted Joe – he is a rare football talent, and his conduct over the past three years leads us to believe he can help us win football games and also become a productive member of this community.

In making our decision, we took a risk. In this case, the risk has an upside as well as a downside. We believe Joe has put this behind him and that he can turn into the player and community member that creates a plus for Cincinnati. We are going to do everything in our power to make this happen. Our hope is that time will prove that this opportunity is deserved, and perhaps – if given a chance – Joe can write a chapter in Cincinnati sports history that both he and Cincinnati can be proud of.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Cool moment from Snoop ... when he sent a personal, emotional video message to his former youth football player, John Ross -- praising him on getting drafted in the NFL.

Ross famously played in the Snoop Youth Football League as a kid -- and his family has been tight with Snoop ever since.

So, when Ross got drafted in the 1st round by the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday, Snoop dug deep into his memory bank to deliver a pretty sweet message to the WR.

By the way, we got Ross right after the draft -- and he told us Coach Snoop can definitely expect some Bengals gear in the mail!

At least one of Pacman Jones' teammates has his back -- with rookie cornerback William Jackson saying he hopes the team doesn't cut the troubled NFL star after his arrest last month.

Jackson was Cincy's 2016 1st round pick -- and says Pacman has been a mentor to him on the field.

But, after Jones was caught on video cussing out a police officer and telling him, "I hope you die" -- many are wondering if the Bengals will finally give Pac his walking papers.

Jackson made it clear he likes the guy and says, "I hope he'll be alright."

By the way, when we spoke with Jackson, he was working with Habitat for Humanity out in North Houston.

Good work.

12:59 PM PT -- Pacman's lawyer Tim Schneider tells TMZ Sports he believes the NFL star was thrown out of the casino under suspicious circumstances.

Schneider says Pacman had been gambling loudly with friends for several hours -- and losing -- and the casino had no issue.

It was only when Pacman's luck began to change that his volume became a problem.

Schneider says when Pacman was asked to leave, he did so without incident and says, "No charges came about as a result of the incident."

Pacman Jones was kicked out of a Cincinnati casino for berating staffers and patrons in the hours before he was arrested at a Hyatt hotel on January 3 ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Cincinnati PD has confirmed Jones was "acting disorderly" at JACK Cincinnati Casino and was asked to leave. Security and police escorted the NFL star out of the building.

One witness tells us Jones had verbally attacked employees at the casino and had an altercation with a casino patron who was trying to record the incident on his cell phone.

We're told Jones also went off on a police officer who responded to the scene and was "fired up" as he left the premises.

Of course, Jones later went to a nearby hotel where he was arrested for allegedly getting physical with a hotel security guard.

When cops arrived at the hotel, Jones continued his aggressive behavior and told the arresting officer "suck my d***" and "I hope you die."

Jones issued a statement saying he was embarrassed by the arrest video and is taking anger management courses.

We reached out to Jones' rep for comment about the casino incident -- so far, no word back.

It's not the first time Jones has been booted from a casino -- he was kicked out of the Hollywood Casino in Indiana in 2015 after going off on casino staffers.

Pacman Jones says he's seeking counseling and anger management after telling a Cincinnati police officer to "suck my d**k" and "die" during an arrest earlier this month.

TMZ Sports broke the story ... the Cincinnati Bengals star went insane after cops were called on him for allegedly getting physical with a security guard at a local hotel.

When cops arrived, the guy went berserk -- screaming obscenities, dropping n-bombs, threatening the officer's job and telling the cop "I hope you die."

Now, Jones has issued a statement through his lawyers saying he is "deeply embarrassed and remorseful for his conduct and language."

"Mr. Jones has the utmost respect for law-enforcement and the difficulties police encounter on a daily basis."

The lawyers add, "Mr. Jones is committed to the process of counseling and anger management, in order to ensure that such situations never occur in the future."

TMZ Sports has obtained the Pacman Jones 911 call -- made while the Bengals star was allegedly going crazy Tuesday morning at the Millennium Hotel in Cincinnati.

The caller is the security guard at the hotel who tells the dispatcher a "Bengals player" was causing a ruckus on the property and harassing him.

When asked if the security guard knew the player's name he replied, "He's got dreads and s**t. I can't think of his name. He's #24."

Throughout the call, you can hear yelling -- presumably Pacman -- in the background.

Cops eventually came to the scene and arrested Pacman -- who allegedly resisted and headbutted one of the officers. He later allegedly spit on a nurse during the booking process.

7:10 AM PT -- The Bengals released a statement, saying "We are aware and working to gather full information, but policy is that it's inappropriate for the Club to comment on unresolved legal matters."

Another off-season ... another Pacman Jones run-in with police.

This time, the Cincinnati Bengals star was arrested Tuesday morning after allegedly getting violent at a Hyatt hotel ... and then spitting on a jail staffer.

Jones allegedly went ballistic at around midnight -- banging on a door and screaming and at one point, cops say he pushed and poked someone ... according to WLWT.

When cops arrived, he allegedly resisted arrest and then spit on a jail staffer while he was being booked.

The 33-year-old was eventually booked on misdemeanor assault, disorderly conduct and obstructing official business charges.

He's also facing felony harassment with a bodily substance for the alleged spit attack.

Jones just appeared in court, wearing a red vest and appearing frustrated. The judge set his bond at $37,500 and said he must stay away from the alleged victim.

Jones is no stranger to legal trouble ... back in 2015, he was kicked out of a casino for disorderly conduct.

In 2013, he struck a woman in a nightclub incident (he was found not guilty).

In 2011, he was arrested for disorderly conduct while intoxicated and resisting arrest.

He was also arrested in 2005 ... and 2006.

It might not be a popular opinion, but Bengals Hall of Famer Anthony Munoz thinks Marvin Lewis should be back on Cincinnati's sidelines next season.

The 11-time Pro Bowler says Lewis doesn't deserve all the blame for the Bengals' 5-9-1 record with one week to go in the season ... pointing out the injuries and staff changes that have plagued the team.

"I'm willing to say okay, he's got another year on his contract. Let's see what happens if everybody gets healthy."

Bengals superstar A.J. Green is already up and walking around after suffering what was initially thought to be a season-ending hamstring injury ... so says his teammate Carlos Dunlap.

"A.J. was walking around yesterday, getting treatment," Dunlap says.

Great news for the Bengals (and of course fantasy football owners!).

As for Giovani Bernard -- who also suffered a bad injury on Sunday -- Carlos says he hasn't spoken with the running back yet ... but says he knows he'll bounce back from his ACL tear.

Meantime, Dunlap rallied up some of his other teammates like Brandon LaFell, Karlos Dansby and Michael Johnson to host a Thanksgiving dinner for 120 homeless men at the City Gospel Mission in Cincinnati on Monday ... and he couldn't be more proud!

The Bengals ain't gonna like this one ...

Steelers running back Le'Veon Bell -- who's also a rapper -- just dropped a NEW TRACK taking aim at Cincinnati ... just 7 weeks before they're set to do battle on the field.

The song is "Rapping Athlete" -- in which Bell spits the lyrics:

"All these haters @ me ...
You need to check my rap sheet ...
You better take the backseat like you play in Cincinnati."

There's a ton of bad blood between the Steelers and the Bengals -- in fact, it was Bengals LB Vontaze Burfict who ended Bell's season last year during a Week 8 matchup.

As far as the rivalry goes, the Steelers have won 6 out of the last 7 matchups ... so, advantage Le'Veon.

By the way, he also name drops Johnny Manziel ... saying he's balling the ex-QB -- but back when he was in college!

Andy Dalton's teammates want the QB to stop losing his bags -- and now, one of his defensive linemen is offering up some advice on how to prevent your luggage from going MIA when he travels.

We spoke with Domata Peko at LAX -- who says he's NEVER had the Dalton problem ... but definitely feels bad for the guy after AD lost his bags TWICE in the same week.

There's more to the clip ...

With Paul McCartney getting rejected from a Grammys after-party (possibly due to the bouncer not knowing who he was) ... we asked 31-year-old Peko if he would be able to identify the Beatle based on his face alone.

Dude. Seriously?!?!

The search is back on for Andy Dalton's suitcases ... 'cause just 5 days after they fell out of the bed of his truck, they've gone missing ... AGAIN!!!

This time, it appears to be the airline's fault -- with the Bengals QB tweeting, "I can't make this up... #bagsearch2016 is back on. @AmericanAir it's your turn to find the luggage now #unbelievable."

The search is over ... Andy Dalton's missing luggage has finally been recovered!

The Bengals QB lost his bags early Wednesday morning -- when they went flying out of the bed of his truck while on the way to the airport in Dallas.

The search became a social media sensation with its own hashtag -- #bagsearch2016 ... but finally, the good news arrived!

We spoke with the Richardson PD -- who tells us someone found the bags on the side of the road and turned them in to police!

Andy just tweeted ... "#bagsearch2016 is officially over! Thankful that Robert found our bags. The power of social media is real!"

Don't worry about Ickey Woods this flu season ... 'cause he's running about 98 Degrees!

Check out this footage of the Bengals legend hanging out with Nick Lachey at LAX ... bro-ing out over Cincinnati's impressive 10-3 record this season.

Both guys are stoked about Cinci's chances at a Super Bowl run -- even with an injured Andy Dalton -- with Woods saying the red head has a real shot to be one of the NFL's all time greats!

BTW, Nick grew up in Cinci and happens to be a hardcore Bengals fan -- so we had to ask Ickey where Lachey ranked on the all time Bengals celebrity fan power list.

His competition -- George Clooney, Woody Harrelson, Carmen Electra ... and (wait for it) Barney Stinson.

AJ McCarron finally got some action this season -- well, enough to impregnate his wife at least ... 'cause Katherine Webb is pregnant!!

The model and the Cincinnati Bengals backup QB just announced they're expecting -- and she's 4 months along the way.

"AJ and I feel beyond blessed and grateful to FINALLY announce after 4 months we have been keeping a secret! We are having a BOY!"

He's the NFL lineman who surprised a family of 7 in a Target store by picking up the check for a PS4 ... and now Bengals star Wallace Gilberry is finally explaining why he did what he did.

Gilberry's story made national news when someone shot a pic of the 270-pounder approaching the random family Monday night and offering to buy holiday gifts for the kids.

So ... why?

"I just went to Target to get some clippers to trim my beard and I saw a family with a dad, wife and five or six kids. The kids were looking at the electronics and I could tell by the mom's face that she was upset about telling the kids they wouldn't be able to afford what they wanted."

"I went up to the family and asked them if they would mind if I bought the kids whatever they wanted. They said that would be so great ... the dad said he was starting a new job and money was tight."

So, Gilberry bought a PS4 and a bunch of video games -- "One of the kids was really excited about a game called Minecraft. I don't even know what that is, but he went crazy."

In the end, Gilberry dropped somewhere close to $800 ... but says it's not about the money.

"One thing about me is that I grew up with my shirt on my back and that's it. Money doesn't define me. If I have a million dollars, I'm going to try to help a million people."