Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Le'Veon Bell's decision to box former UFC fighter Uriah Hall has been questioned by many, and while almost everyone expects the former Pro Bowler to get rolled over, Bell tells us that's not how he sees it going ... he's planning to beat Hall's ass, and one day become champ!

"Honestly, I'm trying to be the best," 30-year-old Bell said when he joined Babcock on the TMZ Sports TV show (airs weekdays on FS1), adding ... "I wanna be a champion at some point."

The 5-time All-Pro is fighting 38-year-old Hall on the Jake Paul vs. Anderson Silva card on Showtime PPV ... and he's a heavy underdog against the former UFC title contender (Uriah beat "Spider," Chris Weidman, Gegard Mousasi in an MMA cage)

Bell -- who beat fellow NFL star Adrian Peterson in his first pro bout in September -- knows he has to go through tough opponents like Uriah if he wants to be a champion.

"The goal I have set in mind, I have to get in the ring with guys like Uriah Hall. He has a ton of experience, he has a lot of fighting background, and the direction I'm trying to go, I gotta beat guys like that. Step in the ring and beat him and Uriah Hall is the next guy."

And, Bell isn't content with just hanging in there ... he wants to end the night with his hand raised.

"I'm going in this fight like I'm trying to win. I got a mission. Uriah Hall is a guy who's on the route of my journey. He's one of those guys I gotta get through. He's gonna be probably one of the toughest guys I done fought because I done fought obviously, I only fought Adrian Peterson, but I haven't even sparred guys with 17 years of experience like Uriah Hall."

Le'Veon was previously rumored as an opponent of Jake Paul's ... so we asked LB if he was interested in fighting the Problem Child, should they both win.

"Yeah, the interest is definitely there, whether I'm the next opponent or whoever my next opponent is. I don't know. If Jake Paul wanna be fight number 2 professionally for me, that would be perfect."

Bell continued ... "Whatever guys that make sense and they put in front of me, I gotta take those guys out and keep on climbing up the ladder, 'cause like I said, I'm trying be a champion and whoever's in my way tryna stop me from that, I'm definitely willing to fight 'em."

Le'Veon last played NFL football in 2021 with the Bucs and Ravens ... and is still only 30. So, would he play again?

Check out the clip ... Bell says there's almost no chance he'd play again, unless one very particular situation presented itself.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers could save their season ... if Rob Gronkowski unretired?!

Warren Moon fully believes that -- with the Hall of Famer telling TMZ Sports he thinks the 3-4 Bucs could turn everything around if Gronk came back this year.

Moon tells us he got the opinion based on everything he's seen out of Tom Brady on the field through seven games. He says he's witnessed the GOAT struggling in the pocket ... and missing an old reliable on important downs.

"He's been a security blanket for [Brady] for so long," Moon said of Gronkowski. "Whenever there's a key play that needs to be made, especially down in the redzone or whatever -- and they had a tough time scoring in the redzone last week -- that's the guy he would usually go to, Rob Gronkowski."

Brady's numbers haven't been horrible so far in 2022 -- he's got 8 passing TDs to just 1 interception -- but something does appear to be off. He only has one multi-TD game this year, and just two performances of over 300 passing yards.

Moon clearly believes Gronkowski could change all of that, and even help out the locker room with his "infectious personality" ... but there's just one problem -- he's not sure if the tight end is even considering coming out of retirement.

Gronk has said repeatedly over the last few months he's done, although his agent, Drew Rosenhaus, has claimed it wouldn't surprise him to see a comeback.

The NFL has completed its investigation into whether two referees asked Mike Evans for an autograph ... and after speaking to both officials, it was determined the postgame interaction did NOT involve getting the Tampa Bay Buccaneers star's Hancock.

Video appeared to show Jeff Lamberth and Tripp Sutter running up to Evans with a piece of paper and a pen after the Bucs' 21-3 loss to the Carolina Panthers ... with many assuming they were taking advantage of an opportunity to get his signature.

The league just released a statement on the matter ... and said despite what it looks like, the refs weren't hunting for a signature.

"After speaking with the individuals involved, we have confirmed that the postgame interaction between Jeff Lamberth, Tripp Sutter, and Mike Evans did not involve a request by the game officials for an autograph," the NFL said.

"Both Lamberth and Sutter have been reminded of the importance of avoiding even the appearance of impropriety when interacting with players, coaches, and club staff on gameday -- including during pregame and postgame time periods."

So ... consider Autographgate over??

Two referees appeared to ask for Mike Evans' autograph following the Buccaneers game on Sunday ... and the optics of it were so bad, the NFL is now investigating it all.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Monday that the league launched its review into the incident shortly after the two men were seen on camera asking the Tampa Bay star for his signature.

Footage shot from inside a tunnel at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte shows the two refs -- ID'ed as side judge Jeff Lamberth and line judge Tripp Sutter -- running up to Evans with a piece of paper and a pen.

They both had the receiver sign the paper -- before the trio hastily headed deeper into the stadium.

According to Pelissero, the NFL-NFLRA CBA says officials are prohibited from asking "players, coaches or any other team personnel for autographs or memorabilia."

It's unclear what punishment -- if any -- the duo is facing over it all.

Antonio Brown is continuing to show no chill whatsoever to his old pal Tom Brady .... he trolled the Bucs star yet again on Sunday -- with another pic of Gisele.

AB released the savage post on his Snapchat just before Brady's Buccaneers took on the Panthers in Carolina ... showing an old pic of Tom and Bundchen -- but with his head photoshopped over Brady's.

In the photo, Brown is smiling ear-to-ear ... and it's another clear shot at his former teammate, who is in the middle of a messy breakup with his longtime partner.

Brown didn't stop there, though ... 'cause after Brady's Bucs got walloped by the lowly Panthers -- Brown took to social media again to continue to roast TB12.

In that post, Brown photoshopped Brady over his own body ... from his infamous MetLife Field incident last season. AB captioned the photo with nothing more than some dancing finger emojis and the hashtag, "#Putthats***On."

Of course, this is not the first time Brown has gone after Brady this season ... you'll recall, just a few weeks ago, he threw up an old picture of him hugging Gisele following Tampa Bay's Super Bowl win over the Chiefs.

Brown also shaded Tom over his mid-training camp hiatus in August ... writing on his Twitter page, "Tom Brady manipulate the game gets 14 days go home get his mind rt lol."

The two used to be good buddies -- in fact, Brady actually let the former star receiver live with him and Gisele when the two first teamed up in New England and then again in South Florida.

Tom Brady has just issued an apology for comparing the NFL season to military deployment ... admitting Thursday afternoon that it was all a "poor choice of words."

Brady actually interrupted a reporter at the beginning of his Buccaneers press conference to deliver the mea culpa -- saying he wanted to express to everyone who "may have taken it in a certain way" that he was sorry.

Brady initially made the war-themed comments during his "Let's Go!" podcast on Monday ... while talking with Kevin Durant about the struggles he's encountered when trying to balance work and pleasure in the middle of a season.

"I almost look at like a football season like you're going away on deployment for the military," Brady said. "And it's like, 'Man, here I go again.'"

The remarks were hit with backlash almost immediately, with many on social media calling them tone-deaf. Army veteran Brad Thomas, who fought in Black Hawk Down, even took to his Instagram page to blast the quarterback over it all.

"Hey @tombrady - this statement is naive and offensive on many levels," he wrote. "You play a game, for entertainment, and seem to have lost your perspective."

Brady clearly felt bad about everything ... looking downtrodden as he delivered his apology Thursday.

Tom Brady says he's finding it nearly impossible to focus on his personal life half of the year ... explaining he feels like NFL seasons are similar to "going away on deployment for the military."

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers star shed light on his struggle with work-life balance while talking with Kevin Durant on this week's episode of the quarterback's "Let's Go" podcast.

The 45-year-old admitted even though he tries to place an emphasis on certain aspects of his off-field life during the football season ... he always finds himself buried in his job instead.

"I almost look at like a football season like you're going away on deployment for the military," Brady said. "And it's like, 'Man, here I go again.'"

"The reality is," he continued, "is you can really only be authentic to yourself. Right? Whatever you may say -- 'Ah, man, I want to, you know, make sure I spend a little more time doing this during the season,' the reality is, is when it comes down to it, your competitiveness takes over and as much as you want to have this playful balance with the work balance -- you're going to end up doing exactly what you've always done, which is why you are who you are."

The words appear to shed further light on the marital issues Brady is having with Gisele Bünchden. She's wanted him to step away from football for years and be more of a hands-on family man. But he's making it clear, he's having a very hard time doing that.

In fact, he said he straight up gets to the point where all he cares about in the fall and winter months is wins and losses.

"You're going to go, 'How the f*** do I get it done?'" he said. "'What do I got to do for my teammates to get it done?'"

Tom Brady lost it on the sidelines during the Bucs' loss to the Steelers Sunday afternoon ... and while the moment went viral, it's much ado about nothing, according to 12-year NFL vet and Pro Bowler, Thomas Jones.

"It happens with everybody. Football is a very emotional game, very emotional game, and if you're not playing with emotion, then you shouldn't be out there, because that means you probably don't want to win," 44-year-old Jones told Babcock when he joined the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1).

"That happens all the time. I know when people see it on TV and when they get clips of it, sometimes it's out of context, that's the nature of the game. That's the nature of the emotions of the game. That's definitely not Tom Brady's first time and definitely not his last time."

Of course, Brady ripped into his offensive line late in the 2nd quarter of Tampa Bay's game against Pittsburgh ... when the Bucs were down 10-6.

TB ultimately lost 20-18. Brady threw for 243 yards and 1 TD. The Bucs are now 3-3 ... and are tied with the Falcons atop the NFC South.

There's much more.

After 12 seasons in the NFL, Jones -- who rushed for 10,591 yards and scored 68 rushing touchdowns -- has been a major force in Hollywood (he's got a bunch of credits to his name, including a role in Straight Outta Compton).

Now, Thomas is Executive Producing a new project called "Life After" ... which follows 12 retired NFL players as they navigate life following professional football.

Jones will also be featured on the series ... which premieres Tuesday (today) on Prime Video. In addition to Thomas, DeMarcus Ware, Spice Adams, Andrew Hawkins and Myron Rolle, amongst others, will be a part of the show.

"We just dig into some of the struggles of the lives of guys once they retire. I think a lot of people have this idea that once NFL players retire, they all have millions of dollars, they go to some deserted island and they're eating grapes and their feet are propped up. That's just not the reality for a lot of guys," Jones says.

Thomas says many retired players struggle to find purpose in life after football.

Gisele Bündchen had a relaxing weekend amid her split from Tom Brady -- visiting her spiritual healer and spending time with her daughter -- while Tom took an L on the field.

Gisele was out and about Sunday in Florida, first visiting Dr. Ewa for a healing session. As we reported, GB paid the doc a visit earlier this month too, sans wedding ring.

After her one-on-one time with Dr. Ewa, Gisele switched gears and had some fun with her daughter, 9-year-old Vivian -- taking her to a horseback riding lesson -- snapping some cute pics of her kid.

Tom's Sunday was not so chill ... with the Bucs losing to the Steelers. T.B. was even seen screaming at his teammates during the game.

The NFL is punishing Tom Brady -- the Tampa Bay Buccaneers superstar has been hit with a fine for kicking at Atlanta Falcons defensive end Grady Jarrett during Sunday's matchup.

The moment went down with 3 minutes left in the Bucs' 21-15 win over the Falcons ... when Jarrett was hit with a controversial roughing the passer penalty after sacking the 7-time Super Bowl champ.

As Jarrett got up off the ground, Brady appeared to kick at the DE ... although it's unclear whether he made contact.

Regardless, Brady -- who will have made more than $330 million for his on-field work at the end of his 23rd season -- was handed an $11,139 fine for the kick, the league announced on Friday.

Jarrett recently said he spoke to the league about the incident ... explaining his side of the situation.

As for the controversy surrounding the play, Garrett thought he did exactly what he was supposed to when he sacked Brady on the potential game-altering play ... but the refs threw the questionable flag, claiming Garrett committed the penalty.

Gisele Bündchen may have just dropped a massive hint about what led to the breaking down of her relationship with Tom Brady and what appears to be the end of their marriage.

Gisele was on Instagram Wednesday when she commented '🙏🏽' in response to a post that read, "You can't be in a committed relationship with someone who is inconsistent with you. Read that again."

The message is certainly interesting -- especially because many feel the beginning of the end of the couple's marriage was when Tom un-retired.

Of course, it's possible Gisele felt Tom was "inconsistent" in his commitment to his family ... first saying he was stepping away from football, only to announce he was going to play again.

TMZ broke the story -- both Tom and Gisele had been searching for divorce attorneys for weeks before reports surfaced they'd hired someone. At this time, we're told the marriage appears to be beyond repair.

Tom Brady is addressing the controversial penalty called in his team's favor during Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons ... saying don't blame me, "I don't throw flags, I throw tablets."

"As I said after the game, I don’t throw flags," Brady joked on his "Let's Go!" podcast with Jim Gray. "What I do throw is tablets. I didn’t have one accessible at that time."

Falcons defensive end Grady Jarrett was penalized for roughing the passer ... after sacking Brady on a pivotal 3rd and-five play with about 3 minutes to go in the fourth quarter.

The call was, umm, let's say ... questionable.

Brady admitted Jarrett wreaked havoc Sunday afternoon, saying, "He was in the backfield all day. He had a hell of a game. I’ll leave it at that.”

If you've watched Tom play long enough, you know tablet-throwing is on brand for the 7x Super Bowl-winning QB ... when things aren't going according to plan (see Saints game this season).

A little boy who ran onto the field during an NFL game Sunday was grabbed by a security guard and slammed to the turf ... all while Tom Brady looked on from just feet away.

The incident happened early in the Buccaneers' game against the Falcons in Tampa Bay ... when a 10-year-old hopped the stadium railing and sprinted onto the playing surface.

The kid -- wearing a Brady shirt -- made it several yards down the sideline ... juking stadium workers who were trying to stop him.

Eventually, however, one staffer grabbed a hold of him and tackled him to the ground. Video shot by a fan in the stands shows the kid being taken down with force.

Authorities then slapped cuffs on the child, before hauling him into a holding area inside the stadium.

A spokesperson for the Tampa Police Dept. tells TMZ Sports the boy was issued a civil citation, given notice to appear in court ... and then released.

This is the second time in less than a week that a field invader has caused a scene at an NFL game ... last Monday, a smoke-bomb-toting protester was slammed by Rams star Bobby Wagner in the middle of "Monday Night Football" against the 49ers. He filed a police report over the incident. The case is ongoing.

Tom Brady admits he never imagined his son, Jack, would follow his footsteps and have a football career ... but he says watching his 15-year-old compete is "one of the great highlights in my life."

Jack -- Brady's son with actress Bridget Moynahan -- is currently playing high school ball as a free safety and quarterback (go figure) ... and while there could be a TON of pressure having the GOAT for a father, the Buccaneers superstar says that's not the case.

"I don't give a s*** how well he does," Brady said on his "Let's Go!" podcast with Jim Gray and Larry Fitzgerald. "I just love watching him and seeing him enjoy it with his friends."

BTW -- Jack hit up one of Brady's games recently ... and that kid is certainly growing up quickly!!

"I think one of the great highlights of my life is watching him play," Brady added. "I love watching him dig deep."

Brady says it's "so much fun" to check out Jack's games ... and believes the kid is already a better athlete than he was at 15.

"I love watching him playing quarterback," Tom said. "He's a very good athlete, great hand-eye coordination. He actually moves better than I did at his age."

Jack's football interest was clear when he hit up Bucs training camp in 2021 ... serving as a ball boy for a bit.

Brady quipped that he's mostly a one-trick pony when it comes to life skills ... but if there's one thing he can help Jack with, it's playing the QB position.

"I don't have a lot of specialties in life other than throwing the football," he said. "He's way smarter. He's got a great work ethic. He's just a great kid."

"But I can definitely help him at quarterback. That's one thing I'd say I can definitely help him with in the future."

Antonio Brown ruthlessly went after his old buddy, Tom Brady, during the quarterback's reported rough patch with Gisele Bündchen ... trolling TB12 by posting an old pic of him hugging the supermodel after the Super Bowl.

AB -- who once lived with Brady and Gisele after joining the Patriots and Buccaneers -- has seemingly turned on the 7-time champ as his marriage appears to be on thin ice.

Brown didn't go into detail on the reason behind his post -- his caption only referenced his viral rap song, "Put That S*** On."

The relationship between the two ex-teammates has seemingly deteriorated since his shirtless exit from the Bucs last season ... despite Brady going out on a limb and vouching for AB to get him in New England and Tampa Bay.

Brown has shaded Brady on numerous occasions since their split ... and even went after him for spending time away from the team during training camp.

"Tom Brady manipulate the game gets 14 days go home get his mind rt lol," Brown tweeted at the time. "Now u see the difference. Put that s*** on."

Brown's pic was seen as distasteful in some eyes ... and drew criticism from NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe, who called him a "clown."

Brown -- who remains team-less since his outburst at MetLife Stadium -- found himself in more hot water over the weekend after a video surfaced of him appearing to expose himself to a woman in a pool in Dubai earlier this year.

Gisele Bündchen is still riding solo in South Beach -- the supermodel was spotted at a Miami gym by herself Monday morning ... days after she and Tom Brady reportedly decided to remain separated during Hurricane Ian.

Gisele and Brady were forced to evacuate Tampa Bay as the tropical storm arrived last week ... but not even Ian could bring the two back together amid their alleged rift, according to Page Six.

While Brady returned to Tampa for the Buccaneers' home loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, Gisele elected to stay south and pass on watching her husband in person ... which shouldn't come as a surprise, considering she's been MIA at all Bucs games this season.

TMZ Sports obtained pics of Gisele at the gym earlier Monday ... showing the model rocking black leggings and a sports bra as she appears to have a serious conversation on her iPhone.

Gisele wasn't wearing her wedding ring for the workout -- but that's not a clue about her marriage status ... she rarely wore the thing even before their rough patch.

As for Brady, things haven't been going great for him on the field either -- the Bucs lost, 41-31 in the Week 4 matchup ... falling to 2-2 on the season.