Football

Houston Texans linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair's three-game suspension for his brutal hit on Trevor Lawrence is over ... and the the six-year NFL veteran revealed he met with commissioner Roger Goodell and other league higher-ups to own up to his actions and defend his character while serving his punishment.

The 27-year-old released a statement on X ahead of Houston's Week 18 matchup against the Tennessee Titans ... in which he stated his play on the former No. 1 overall pick and the fight that ensued "was an embarrassing and eye-opening moment for me."

"That was not the way I want to represent myself or my family and I will continue to learn and grow from that moment."

Janet Jackson's paying homage to one of her career milestones ... 'cause one of her dancers grabbed her chest from behind during her recent show -- and, it's pretty clearly a throwback to her 1993 album, "Janet."

The singer-songwriter took the stage at Resorts World in Vegas Monday ... and, while outfitted in a tight black leather bodysuit, a dancer came up and ran his hands over Jackson's chest ... while Ms. Jackson looked ready to get 'Nasty' with it.

The Vegas pose calls back to the cover of her 1993 album "Janet," which showed Jackson facing the camera with her arms up in the air, with two hands cupping her bare breasts from behind -- the wide release only showed her from the neck up, but the limited edition featured the full photo. The image was also on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine that year.

Dana Stubblefield is on his way to being a free man -- his rape conviction was overturned last week -- and according to the former NFL star's attorneys, his first order of business when he gets out will be a bunch of family time.

Kenneth Rosenfeld and Allen Sawyer sat down with TMZ Sports just days after a California appellate court vacated Stubblefield's prison sentence ... and they said he's "euphoric" over the decision -- and is now looking forward to hanging with his loved ones.

"He's going to be with his family," Sawyer said of Dana's immediate plans. "If there's one thing that Dana misses the most, it's being with his family."

Deion Sanders is fed up with reports regarding his sons, Shedeur and Shilo -- saying there are a bunch of morons running around spewing fake news on where he would like to see them land in the NFL.

The leader of the Colorado Buffaloes' sidelines teed off on social media on Monday ... amid a lot of chatter surrounding which team is at the top of his wish list ahead of April's draft.

There has been a ton of speculation on preferred destinations within the Sanders family ... especially with Shedeur expected to be a top-five talent -- and some not-so-respected franchises in position to pick high.

The FBI is warning pro athletes to be vigilant ... confirming Monday groups of organized thieves are targeting stars' homes in search of high-priced valuables.

The feds issued the alert just a couple days after NBA superstar Luka Doncic became the latest A-lister to have his place broken into ... explaining criminals are hitting residences belonging to big-time players while they're on the road or at games.

"These homes are targeted for burglary due to the perception they may have high-end goods like designer handbags, jewelry, watches, and cash," FBI officials said, according to ABC News.

The Minnesota Vikings' defense certainly had their heads in the game on Sunday ... and they proved that with how they celebrated a big turnover -- by doing a "High School Musical" dance!!

The guys broke out the jig during the first quarter of the Vikes' 27-25 victory over the Green Bay Packers ... when Jerry Tillery forced Josh Jacobs to cough up the ball, which Camryn Bynum recovered.

After the change of possession, the D gathered near the end zone and showed off their rehearsed choreography from the 2006 Disney movie's classic banger, "We're All In This Together."

If Rod Woodson was advising Travis Hunter, he tells TMZ Sports he'd suggest the Buffs star only play corner in the NFL ... explaining he thinks the Heisman Trophy winner can be "an All-Pro" at the position.

Hunter, of course, was named college football's best player earlier this month because of the way he dominated at both WR and CB -- but Woodson says doing both at a high level in the NFL is just not feasible.

The former Pittsburgh Steeler -- who played defensive back in the league for 17 seasons -- said he'd rather see Hunter focus on corner ... and take occasional reps at wideout, just like his mentor, Deion Sanders, did during his NFL days.

Put the kids to bed before Le'Veon Bell fights former Jake Paul opponent Ryan Bourland ... 'cause the former All-Pro running back turned boxer tells TMZ Sports' fans can expect VIOLENCE!

"I just can't wait. I can't wait," 32-year-old Bell said. "Ryan Bourland is in trouble. He is in damn trouble."

Bell and Bourland are scheduled to box on April 12 in Pittsburgh (where Le'Veon starred as a Steeler -- a fight locale LB's pumped for!) under Damon Feldman's Celebrity Boxing promotion.

Tina Knowles is well aware some are popping off over Beyoncé's Netflix Christmas Day halftime show performance ... and she's not having it.

As you know, Beyoncé took the stage at the Texans-Ravens game earlier this week in her hometown of Houston ... but of course, there were some -- such as Dave Portnoy -- who bashed the show and the superstar.

Momma Knowles recently took to Instagram to clap back at haters, saying in part ... "It is mind-boggling to me that you would take your precious Christmas day and watch a performance of someone you hate and you don’t think has talent so that you can go talk ish about it later😂😂."

Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are enjoying their respective breaks ... dressing up for a dinner in the Big Apple with a couple of their famous pals.

The singer-songwriter and her footballing beau hit up BondST Restaurant -- a celeb hotspot in NYC -- Friday night ... going for a long, four-hour meal.

Check out the pics ... the two walked into BondST in matching khaki, accented with black -- perfectly coordinated as they walked into the restaurant.

The Pop-Tarts Bowl got off to a hot start Saturday ... with three giant Pop-Tart mascots stripping off their silver wrappings in the pregame festivities.

Here's the deal ... the bowl game -- which has become a fan-favorite since the popular snackfood brand took over the naming rights last year -- kicked off earlier Saturday in Orlando, Florida.

If you don't know, the MVP of the game's winning team gets to choose a flavor of giant Pop-Tart to toast -- and the team gets to dig into the bad boy postgame.

Avert your eyes and ears, Bills Mafia ... NFL legend Rod Woodson tells TMZ Sports Lamar Jackson is the MVP this year -- not Josh Allen.

According to the former Baltimore Ravens defensive back, it's not particularly close, either.

"It's no question in my head," the Hall of Famer said this week, "Lamar Jackson is the MVP."

Sports broadcasting legend Greg Gumbel has died.

The longtime studio host's family said in a statement to CBS on Friday "he passed away peacefully surrounded by much love after a courageous battle with cancer."

They added, "Greg approached his illness like one would expect he would, with stoicism, grace, and positivity. He leaves behind a legacy of love, inspiration and dedication to over 50 extraordinary years in the sports broadcast industry; and his iconic voice will never be forgotten."

Nick Saban is being a good sport amid his silly beef with Shane Gillis ... saying he understands the comedian was doing his job when cracking a joke about paying players during his legendary tenure at Alabama -- while proving he's got a sense of humor himself.

The "Tires" star initially made the comments on "College GameDay" earlier this month ... claiming Notre Dame is able to compete now that all schools allow student-athletes to get compensated for their accomplishments -- and not just Bama and the SEC in previous years.

Gillis claimed he was just teasing Saban -- who he referred to as "Alabama Jones" due to his hat choice that day -- and admitted he didn't REALLY think there was shady business going on in the conference.

Caleb Williams might wanna stay off social media for a bit ... 'cause the Chicago Bears' rookie quarterback was on the receiving end of a ton of criticism for his "Thursday Night Football" outing.

While it was the Bears who fell to the Seattle Seahawks in an ugly 6-3 result, it was probably the viewers who took the biggest L on the night ... with the matchup being quite the stinker from start to finish.

Chicago's No. 1 overall pick went 16/28 for just 122 yards and an interception in the defeat ... and folks on social media were quick to sound off on the signal-caller throughout and after the game.

It wasn't too difficult to see who Simone Biles was supporting at the Bears vs. Seahawks game Thursday night ... check out her 'fit -- it was covered in images of her husband, Jonathan Owens!!

The U.S. gymnastics star pulled up to Soldier Field for the "Thursday Night Football" tilt in a hoodie and some sweats that had Owens' face all over them.

The Chicago defensive back's No. 36 digits were also featured on the cozy garb ... and it was clear the 29-year-old appreciated the look, as he gave her a big ole smooch before taking the field.