TMZ Sports - Page 50

Jon Gruden ... clearly wasn't invited to any birthday parties as a kid -- because his rendition of "Happy Birthday" on "Hard Knocks" sounds like it's the FIRST time he's ever sang it.

Seriously ... it's terrible. Like worse than Hunter Renfrow bad.

The Oakland Raiders head coach was finishing off a team meeting when he instructed the players to serenade GM Mike Mayock.

What ensued was pure, hot garbage -- insanely terrible. Embarrassing, actually.

Of course, there was other important stuff that went down on HBO's "Hard Knocks" on Tuesday -- from Antonio Brown's frostbitten feet to his helmet drama ... to tight end Darren Waller's battle with substance abuse.

But, the worst part of the Raiders' camp ... Gruden singing.

Tyson Fury says he'd only need ONE hand to beat Andy Ruiz's ass ... and he tells TMZ Sports he'd even let the fans pick which arm he would use!!!

"I only need one hand for him," Fury said. "One hand."

The boxing superstar's fight schedule is pretty booked up this year ... he's got a bout with Otto Wallin on Sept. 14 and a rematch with Deontay Wilder set for Feb. 22, 2020.

But, Tyson tells us he'd be down for a fight with heavyweight champ Ruiz after that ... saying, "I can never say no to anything."

But, Fury says the fight probably wouldn't be a good one ... telling us he'd wreck Ruiz!!!

By the way, Fury didn't use up all his trash talk on Andy ... he also guaranteed a knockout in his fight with Wilder, saying, "I don't believe Deontay Wilder is going to put the Gypsy King to rest."

UFC star Israel Adesanya is a phony champ who hasn't beaten any level fighters ... so says Paulo Costa, the dude who just beat Yoel Romero.

TMZ Sports talked to Costa -- the #2 ranked UFC middleweight -- about his next move after his epic win over Romero ... and it's clear he ain't impressed with the 2 champs in his division.

"Yoel Romero is more tough than Whittaker, I know. And, man, Adesanya, Adesanya is a fake champion."

Why does Costa -- the 28-year-old undefeated (13-0) fighter -- think Izzy's a fake champ???

"Because he not proven yet. He needs to prove. He won against who? Tavares? Derek Brunson. Gastelum. Gastelum is good fighter, but Gastelum is not a middleweight. Against Anderson Silva. Man, Anderson Silva is not top 10. Not top 5. I beat a real beast. I beat Yoel Romero."

FYI -- Adesanya won the interim belt against Kelvin Gastelum earlier this year.

Whittaker (middleweight champ) and Adesanya (interim middleweight champ) are fighting October 5 at UFC 243 in Australia ... Costa says he'll be there, and he has a message for both fighters.

"I am a real deal. I'm training like a crazy guy. This is my life. [I'm] born to fight. [I'm] born to win, and I will take the belt."

Carli Lloyd stays winning on the soccer pitch AND the football field ... the USWNT star buried a 55-yard field goal at Eagles' practice -- and Philly's kicker himself was impressed!!!

Lloyd was at Eagles' practice Tuesday to cheer on her favorite football team (she's from New Jersey) and she decided to take a few kicks with Eagles stud kicker Jake Elliott after the workout.

Turns out, Carli's soccer skills translate to the gridiron ... 'cause she was nailing field goals all over the place -- including one from 55 yards out!!!

Oh, AND it was on a goalpost WAAAAYYYY smaller than regulation size!!!

"Unreal stuff!" Elliott said after the kicks ... "@CarliLloyd is very much #ForTheBrand."

Carli seemed to enjoy the day as well, writing of the practice, "Thank you to the @Eagles for having me out! Thanks to @JustinTuck @jake_elliott22 @MayorRandyBrown for the good time and tips!"

Ex-Michigan State star and NBA player Mateen Cleaves has been acquitted on ALL charges in his rape case ... after a jury determined the hooper was not guilty in court on Tuesday.

Cleaves -- who led Michigan State to a national title in 2000 -- was accused of taking a woman to a motel in 2015 and held her there against her will. The woman claimed Cleaves forced himself on her and raped her.

A jury of 9 women and 3 men deliberated for 2 1/2 hours before reaching the verdict.

Cleaves -- who has adamantly maintained the sex with the accuser was consensual -- had support from legendary Spartans coach, Tom Izzo, who attended the closing arguments in the Flint courtroom.

Breathe easy, Raiders fans ... Antonio Brown ain't getting the boot from Oakland -- Jon Gruden said the superstar practiced Tuesday with a certified helmet and is now "all in" with the team.

Of course, Raiders GM Mike Mayock was pissed at Brown over the weekend for not practicing while he fights the NFL over helmet issues ... and gave the WR a stern "all-in" or "all-out" ultimatum.

Clearly, AB is choosing the former ... 'cause Gruden said Brown put his problems with his helmet aside and fully practiced with the Raiders.

"He's all in, ready to go," Gruden said after the workout. "That's my understanding. Really happy to have him out here. He's a great player."

Gruden also said it appears Brown has put his frostbitten feet behind him ... saying he's under the impression AB is healthy and ready to go.

But, AB is still holding out hope he can switch back to his old helmet ... a source close to Brown confirmed with TMZ Sports on Monday that Brown has filed a new grievance with the league to try to get his old helmet cleared for at least the 2019 season.

Unclear when an independent arbitrator is set to hear Brown's case vs. the league, but NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported it's supposed to be "expedited."

Jimmy Garoppolo sucked on the field Monday night ... but Jerry Rice is giving the NFL star his unwavering support ... going to Twitter to defend the QB with a hilarious fail as bad as Jimmy's performance.

The 49ers signal-caller went 1 for 6 with 0 yards and an INT in his first game back since suffering a season-ending ACL injury in Week 3 last season ... resulting in an incredibly bad 0.0 QB rating.

But, don't freak out, fans ... the G.O.A.T. is here to make everything better!!!

"Relax everyone jimmy G . will be fine this year!!! Go miners" the G.O.A.T. tweeted.

Yes. Miners.

Hey, we all know Rice meant well after the team's $137 million man stunk it up, but the fumble on the vote of confidence is hilariously ironic.

As sure as Jimmy G will get to see another game, Rice got another shot at the tweet (which was deleted) ... and got it right the 2nd time around.

Conor McGregor just posted a message to Nate Diaz -- setting the groundwork for a 3RD FIGHT ... and telling Nate, "I'll be prepared."

The Irish superstar noted that Tuesday marks the 3-year anniversary of McGregor vs. Diaz II -- a fight Conor won by split decision at UFC 202 in 2016.

"3 years to the day myself and this Mexican animal went to war," Conor said.

Then he dropped this bomb -- "I’ll be prepared for it when we go again. If we go again."

"If not, respect always. A war for the ages. No bitch talk. Just real sh*t."

Conor also congratulated Diaz on his dominant victory over Anthony Pettis at UFC 241 over the weekend ... saying, "It was motivating to see it for my own comeback."

"I don’t blame you not mentioning me for the trilogy bout post fight, you know what I’m like when I get going. Vicious."

Conor hasn't fought since his loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229 in October -- and while Dana White has told us he expects to see Conor back in the Octagon in 2019, he hasn't specified an opponent.

Clearly, Conor has his eyes on Nate ... but Diaz called out Jorge Masvidal instead.

Carlos Carrasco is a BEAAAAAASSSSTTTT ... 'cause just a few months after being diagnosed with cancer -- the Indians star took the mound again, AND THREW 97 MPH!!!!

Cookie hit the injured list back on June 5 after docs told him he had leukemia. He was feeling sluggish ... and nobody with the team knew if he'd be back again this season.

But, Carlos fought like hell the past few weeks to get back on the diamond ... and the dude looked like he hadn't missed a day of throwing when he made his first Minor League rehab start for Double-A Akron on Monday night.

According to MLB.com's Mandy Bell, Carrasco hit 97 MPH with his first pitch of the night ... and followed that up with a few more heaters at 96.

The Indians stud finished with one strikeout, one walk and no hits or runs given up in his one inning of work ... and he left to a huge cheer from the crowd.

"It feels great because those people were behind me the whole way," Carrasco said. "From Day One until now."

Unclear when Carrasco will officially make his return to the Indians' big-league roster ... but manager Terry Francona said he anticipates having Carlos back in the bullpen sooner rather than later.

As for his timeline on a return, Carrasco said, "I'm ready to go."

Mets legend Darryl Strawberry ain't bitter that Pete Alonso is crushing his rookie home run record ... in fact, the dude is fired up for NY's newest superstar!!!

"That's pretty cool, man," Strawberry tells TMZ Sports ... "I'm really happy for him."

Darryl hit 26 bombs as a rookie for the Mets in 1983 ... and no first-year Met had come close to catching that mark since -- until Alonso this season.

But, Pete hasn't just caught that number ... he's destroyed it -- the rookie has 40 home runs this season, only 12 away from the most in MLB history for a rook.

Strawberry tells us he thinks it's awesome, saying out in NYC, "That's pretty cool, man, that after 36 years someone breaks your record. So, I'm really happy for him."

Straw says it ain't just Alonso he's rooting for this year ... he tells us he's still a huge fan of both the Yankees and the Mets' entire squads.

Ronda Rousey is so tough, she BROKE HER FINGER on the set of the "9-1-1" TV show -- BUT NEVER BROKE CHARACTER!!!

Ronda -- who plays an L.A. Fire Dept. badass on the show -- was shooting a scene in Mexico last week in which she was supposed to slam a door during a dramatic action moment.

But, as one source put it ... "She was a little over-exuberant and slammed the door on her finger."

We're told Ronda didn't wince, didn't complain, didn't mess up the scene ... instead, she continued to stay in character and finished the scene.

Only after the director yelled "cut," we're told, Ronda FINALLY acknowledged the injury -- saying, "Ow. You're not gonna like this!"

Ronda went to a doctor who diagnosed her with a broken finger -- which is NOTHING for the former UFC superstar.

She got a splint for her hand and went right back to work the next day, our sources tell us.

Hollywood ... it ain't for the weak.

NBA superstar Russell Westbrook believes DRONES are the way of the future -- so he's made it a mission to help at-risk youth learn to pilot 'em ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Brodie's Why Not? Foundation teamed up with Chad Brownstein and the LA Conservation Corps to help "at risk young adults" in Los Angeles learn digital skills that will help them get good paying jobs in the tech field.

Not only will the students learn coding and computer engineering -- but he's also created an "advanced drone piloting career path program" ... which sounds AWESOME!!!!

"As a kid who grew up here in LA, I know how important it is to feel supported and empowered by the community," Westbrook said ... "By helping to provide these resources my hope is that the youth will be able to see how bright their future can be and expand the vision of what they think they’re capable of."

Westbrook and Brownstein are also funding a state of the art computer lab -- which is huge for kids who don't have the resources to learn computer skills on their own.

New hair ... don't care?!?

Seems Ezekiel Elliott is living by that mantra ... 'cause he's back in Cabo holding out from Cowboys camp with a fresh, new hairdo after Jerry Jones jokingly burned him earlier this week.

Of course, 24-year-old Zeke's been missing from Dallas practices all month, wanting a new deal ... and after his backup, Tony Pollard, killed it against the Rams on Saturday -- Jerry said, "Zeke who?!"

It was meant to be funny ... but Zeke wasn't laughing -- his agent told ESPN the comment was "disrespectful."

Now, Zeke's back in Cabo after briefly returning to Texas ... and he's sporting some new dreads while doing it!!!

Unclear if the haircut is a message (unlikely) ... but we do know one thing -- Zeke is serious about this holdout, and it seems he really might not play week 1 for the 'Boys.

But, hey, that haircut though ... #swaaaaaaaaaag!!!

Zeke is supposed to enter his 4th season in the NFL after being drafted by the Cowboys with the 4th pick of the 2016 NFL Draft.

Zeke is still under his rookie deal -- which is only slated to pay him $3.85 million in 2019.

Elliott is looking to be the highest-paid RB in the NFL -- and with Todd Gurley signing a 4-year, $57.5 million contract extension in 2018 ... he clearly wants Jerry Jones to open up that wallet!!!

A fish head left in the freezer is the reason Antonio Brown is allegedly stiffing a guy out of $38,000 ... so says the celeb chef who put it in there.

The story is wild ...

Stefano Tedeschi -- who filed a lawsuit against AB just last month -- tells TMZ Sports after cooking for the NFL superstar at the Pro Bowl in 2018, he left a salmon head in the freezer with the intentions of making some soup the next day.

The problem? Apparently, AB and his crew thought it was a threat -- and straight-up kicked him out of their mansion!!!

"The salmon head I thought was a joke," Tedeschi says ... "But, apparently, it was real."

Tedeschi says he had agreed to cook for Brown and all of his friends for 3 days in Florida during Pro Bowl weekend last year.

He says the first day went off swimmingly ... he cooked breakfast and lunch for Antonio and his guys -- and then came back later in the evening to do a big cooking show dinner.

Part of that meal included filleting a salmon -- one Tedeschi had bought with his son earlier in the day. But, when Tedeschi stored the head of the fish in the freezer after the show ... that's when he says all the trouble began.

"Apparently they misunderstood the fish head," Stefano said.

"I said, 'Who could have possibly misunderstood a fish head in the freezer? Tell me, what person with intelligence could have misplaced a fish head for some mob, horse head?!'"

Stefano says when he came back to cook the next day, he was booted from the property and wasn't allowed to retrieve any of his cooking gear that he had left on the premises.

Antonio also didn't allow him to cook the following day ... and, according to Stefano, the receiver never paid him a dime for the weekend.

As we previously reported, Stefano is now suing Brown for $38,521.20 for the weekend, and he tells us all signs are pointing toward an ugly legal battle in court to get the cash.

"AB's team is acting like we're going to go to court ... he's going to drag this thing out, he's got more money than me, blah, blah, blah."

We reached out to Brown's attorney, Darren Heitner, for comment on the fish head story ... and Heitner tells us, "There is no comment on the 'fish head' claim nor any other claim the plaintiff wants to make with the media."

Baker Mayfield simply can't believe the NY Giants selected Daniel Jones with the 6th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft ... saying the move "blows my mind."

Mayfield made the comments while doing an interview with GQ -- the reporter says they happened to be sitting by a TV when ESPN ran a segment on Jones, the rookie out of Duke.

That's when Mayfield said, "I cannot believe the Giants took Daniel Jones ... blows my mind."

Some people are interpreting the comments as a shot at Jones -- others say Baker was just vocalizing how EVERYONE felt about the pick ... considering so many draft experts had other QBs like Dwayne Haskins ranked higher than DJ.

If you're wondering, the Browns do NOT play the Giants during the regular season this year.

The GQ reporter continued the conversation about NFL quarterbacks -- noting that a ton of so-called "experts" never seem to accurately predict which college stars will make good pros.

Baker added, "Some people overthink it ... that's where people go wrong. They forget you've gotta win."

He continued to explain what makes a great QB -- "Either you have a history of winning and being that guy for your team ... or you don't."

So far, no comment from Jones.

So ... Steve Nash plays park soccer with former World Cup stars now -- and TMZ Sports has the video!

It's pretty amazing ... the 45-year-old ex-NBA superstar was playing some 5 on 5 (with a small goal) on Monday at an L.A. park with the likes of Team USA legend Cobi Jones!!!

Nash wasn't the most dominant guy on the field, but he certainly held his own ... which shouldn't be too big of a surprise considering he's a freak athlete who loves soccer.

In fact, Nash has a shrine in his L.A. home to some of his favorite soccer players ... so to get out there and ball out with Cobi Jones must've been awesome.

Of course, Jones is a Team USA soccer legend who played on the national team from 1992 to 2004 ... scoring 15 goals during his international career. He's the all-time leader in appearances for Team USA, with 164 caps.