Denver Broncos

TMZ Sports has obtained the bizarre 911 call recording from the domestic dispute involving the son of Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen ... in which he claims to be "the blood of the city."

John Bowlen's girlfriend initially called 911 on Wednesday night ... but the call was cut short ... and the last thing the operator heard was the woman screaming.

So, the operator called back ... only this time, John picked up ... and goes on a bizarre rant in which he claims to be the owner of the Denver Broncos ... says he's dealing with a "crazy girlfriend" ... and swears on his life that everything is fine.

"As the blood of the city, I'm telling you nothing is wrong."

He also dropped some names ... "I'm a man of the city. A friend of the mayor. And everybody knows exactly who I am. I'm going through a lot."

Bowlen continued ... "She is leaving right now, nothing is wrong. I love you guys. Thank you. Bye bye."

Obviously, the operator didn't buy Bowlen's story -- cops went to the scene and Bowlen was arrested on domestic violence charges.

The son of Denver Broncos owner Pat Bowlen was arrested for domestic violence in Colorado on Wednesday ... while wearing a Broncos shirt ... TMZ Sports has learned.

29-year-old John Bowlen Jr. -- one of 7 Bowlen children -- is being held at the Arapahoe County jail outside of Denver on suspicion of 3rd degree assault and harassment.

According to the police report, the victim told police John was under the influence of whippets and alcohol. Whippets is slang for nitrous oxide.

The woman -- who says she has been dating Bowlen for 10 months -- says the two were inside of John's apartment when John began acting strange and "shoved her against the wall."

The woman says she called 911, but John took the phone and hung up.

When the operator called back, John reportedly answered and said, "This is the owner of the Denver Broncos. I am sorry. K. Nothing is wrong. This is John Bowlen."

The woman says she had been drinking alcohol earlier in the evening.

John was taken into custody for domestic violence harassment and property crimes. He's being held without bail.

According to multiple reports, John has an MBA in sports and entertainment from the University of Denver and is in executive training with the Broncos. He is one of the frontrunners to take over the team when his father (who is suffering from Alzheimer's) steps down.

Pat Bowlen isn't the only Broncos executive with a son who's been accused of domestic violence -- last year the son of Broncos General Manager John Elway, John Elway III, was arrested and convicted of attacking his GF during a heated argument in Arizona.

The Denver Broncos have released a statement saying, "We are disappointed to learn of the matter involving John Bowlen ... . While this is a personal issue, he is accountable to all club and league conduct policies. As such, John will be placed on an indefinite leave of absence from the organization."

Antonio Smith's child abuse investigation is not only sexual in nature ... TMZ Sports has learned the alleged victim is one of his relatives.

We broke the story ... the Fort Bend County Sheriff's department in Texas has been investigating the Denver Broncos' new defensive end since late last year.

Now, a family source tells us the accuser told investigators the alleged abuse involved repeated sexual contact from December 2010 through January 2014. We're told the accuser is related to Smith, but not an immediate family member.

According to our source ... the alleged victim also told investigators about a conversation when Smith told her, "God has a plan," and "some relationships are meant to go deeper than just blood lines."

We're told all the alleged incidents occurred at Smith's home outside Houston. He played for the Texans from 2009 to 2013.

Denver Broncos defensive end Antonio Smith -- a former Pro Bowler -- is being investigated for alleged child abuse in Texas ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We spoke with the Fort Bend County District Attorney, John Healey, who confirms the child abuse division is handling the case against Smith -- though, so far, no charges have been filed.

Sources connected to the case tell us ... the accuser claims there are multiple incidents dating back to 2010.

We're told the case was first reported to officials in Colorado back in November -- but the case was forwarded to Texas, because that's where the accuser says the alleged incidents took place.

FYI -- Smith played for the Houston Texans from 2009 to 2013.

Healey tells us, "We're trying to discern the truth from the untruthfulness of the claim to decide what charges, if any, will be filed."

Peyton Manning has not officially decided if he's coming back to play in the NFL next season, but one thing is for sure ... the Denver Broncos QB needs to retire that t-shirt!

The future Hall of Famer and his family were spotted poolside in Miami Beach this week, where the QB committed the personal foul of wearing a shirt in the pool ... a move usually reserved for offensive linemen.

With the Denver Broncos off this weekend, John Elway decided to blow off some steam by jetting to Vegas to party with his wife ... and some little people ... TMZ Sports has learned.

After spending some time in L.A., the Broncos' Vice President of Football Operations hit up Sin City this weekend -- where he sat VIP at Beacher's Madhouse in the MGM Grand.

Elway's wife Paige Green -- a former Oakland Raiders cheerleader -- was there as the couple watched a variety of crazy acts ... including the world's oldest strippers and a performance by Mini-Kanye West and Mini-Psy.

We're told Elway had a blast -- and took photos with some of the mini-performers.

Perfect way to forget about losing to the Seahawks ... for the second time in a row.

Legalized pot has been very, very good for Peyton Manning ... especially in Colorado ... because the QB says new weed-friendly laws in the Mile High State have been great for his pizza business.

The Denver Broncos superstar -- who owns 21 Papa Johns franchises in the Denver area -- was talking with Sports Illustrated's Peter King when he was asked about voting and laws in CO.

And that's when Peyton dropped this gem -- "There’s some different laws out here in Colorado. Pizza business is pretty good out here, believe it or not, due to some recent law changes."

Doesn't take a rocket-scientist to figure out he's talking about Colorado's new laws legalizing recreational marijuana ... and clearly, Peyton's learned stoners love pizza.

Broncos running back Ronnie Hillman has some advice for "Breaking Bad" star Aaron Paul -- now that you're off the Denver bandwagon ... go be a Raiders fan!

We spoke to Hillman to find out how he felt about Paul pulling a George Clooney on the Broncos -- ending his Super Bowl love affair with the team and ignoring them completely.

But the second year running back isn't crying into his Haagan-Daaz ... telling us, "To each his own, I’ll probably go see 'Need For Speed' anyway."

Then came the shot -- "But if he don’t like us, he can always go be a Raiders fan."

Ouch.

Bad news for Broncos fans ... "Breaking Bad" star Aaron Paul has given up on your team -- just months after he hopped on the bandwagon in the first place.

Aaron -- nicest guy ever btw -- was leaving Gallagher's Steakhouse in NYC last night when we started asking him about all the moves Denver's been making in the past few days.

That's when Aaron -- who proudly rooted for Peyton & the Broncos when he sat behind the bench at the Super Bowl -- made it clear his days of supporting the blue and orange are OVER!

In fairness to Aaron, he was only really a Broncos fan for 1 day to begin with ... but after that Super Bowl performance, we're guessing he's not the only bandwagoner to jump ship.

EVIL PEYTON MANNING IS BACK!!!!!

For the first time since 2008, Peyton Manning is rockin' the goatee ... in what appears to be an attempt to find a new identity after that humiliating Super Bowl loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Evil Peyton and his facial hair surfaced at what appears to be a charity event over the weekend ... where he gave a speech, rocked a tux and even posed for pics with fans.

Somewhere, Evil Spock is laughing maniacally.

[H/T Terez Owens]

Shannon Sharpe tells TMZ Sports ... he's bummed out after getting the news that he's out at "The NFL Today" pregame show at CBS ... but says, "I'm grateful I had ten great years."

CBS announced the move today ... Shannon and Dan Marino will not return to the show next season. Instead, Tony Gonzalez will join the cast.

"Things happen," Sharpe says ... "They made the best decision for them and now I have to make the best decision for me."

Sharpe is adamant he has "no hard feelings" toward CBS -- adding, "They've been great to me."

As for Tony G -- Sharpe says they're friends and he wishes Tony the best of luck.

"I know Tony wanted to do this so I'm happy for him and his family."

So, what's next for Shannon? He's still trying to evaluate his options, but it's clear you haven't heard the last from the Hall of Fame tight end.

Before the Super Bowl, Jeremy Piven said Peyton Manning was the GOLD STANDARD for a celebrity pitchman -- but after his pathetic performance, is Peyton's star falling in Hollywood?

Piven was leaving Freewheel Sports in Larchmont today and made a strong case for why Peyton's still the man ... but not everyone's convinced.

Some people in the office think Peyton's marketing power took a serious hit on Feb. 2nd -- and it could open the door for other players like Russell Wilson and Richard Sherman to swoop in on those coveted sports-oriented endorsements.

Then again, no one rocks a pair of stunner shades like #18.

The Dream NY knows where its bread is buttered ... it's now groveling -- BEGGING for forgiveness after its own bar slammed Diddy for stiffing its waitress on Super Bowl Sunday.

Honchos at Dream say they are "embarrassed and offended" by the Facebook post of an employee who works at The Bar inside the hotel. The employee tore the rap mogul a new one, saying, "Thanks Sean Combs aka P. Diddy for leaving no tip on Super Bowl Sunday."

We just found out ... the employee responsible for the post -- like the Broncos -- got sacked.

This is disastrous for the hotel, because Dream is a mecca for rappers, and Diddy is one of their Gods.

The Hotel execs say, 'We look forward to welcoming you back soon."

Martha Stewart is coming out swingin' in defense of Peyton Manning ... telling TMZ Sports he did a "good job" in the Super Bowl ... and kept his composure when his team imploded.

Stewart was leaving The London Hotel in NYC when she went off about the Super Bowl -- explaining that she not only watched the game, but she HATED IT because it was so mismatched.

But when we asked about Peyton Manning ... Stewart made it clear she had his back -- saying, "He held it together. He could've cracked. He didn't."

Katy Perry tipped a girl and she liked it -- then she tipped more -- dropping STACKS on hot strippers after the Super Bowl Sunday night ... and to make it even more awesome, her BF John Mayer was there too.

We're told Katy and John stopped by Spearmint Rhino in Santa Barbara around 11pm Sunday night after the Seahawks devastated the Broncos.

We're told Katy and John spent in the thousands, tipping the girls BIG and getting multiple private dances. Katy even took photos with the girls.

Beats masturbating at home.

To the victor go the spoils ... just ask Russell Wilson, who's sitting courtside at the Brooklyn Nets game with Beyonce and Jay Z.