TMZ Sports - Page 50

Joe Biden took a subtle jab at Aaron Rodgers over his COVID vaccine stance in December ... and now the NFL star is finally swinging back -- wondering out loud how the guy got votes.

If you missed it, while Biden was touring a tornado-ravaged part of Kentucky, he whispered to a woman in a Green Bay Packers cap and shirt, "Tell that quarterback he's gotta get the vaccine."

The interaction was captured on camera ... and when Rodgers was finally asked about it as part of a lengthy interview with ESPN this week -- he said he was pissed.

Then, he took his own jabs at POTUS.

"When the president of the United States says, 'This is a pandemic of the unvaccinated,' it's because him and his constituents, which, I don't know how there are any if you watch any of his attempts at public speaking, but I guess he got 81 million votes," Rodgers said.

"But when you say stuff like that, and then you have the CDC, which, how do you even trust them, but then they come out and talk about 75% of the COVID deaths have at least four comorbidities."

Rodgers continued, "And you still have this fake White House set saying that this is the pandemic of the unvaccinated, that's not helping the conversation."

As we previously reported, Rodgers has been extremely vocal about his vaccine status in the last few months ... famously explaining he's not vaccinated because he says he's allergic to the Pfizer and Moderna shots, and just doesn't want the Johnson & Johnson version.

Steroids contributed to the shocking and sudden death of bodybuilder George Peterson ... autopsy results, obtained by TMZ Sports, revealed.

In the documents, officials say Peterson died due to "sudden cardiac dysrhythmia due to hypertensive cardiovascular disease." They note in the docs that "anabolic steroid use" was a contributing factor.

Officials ruled the manner of death as "natural."

He was just 37 years old.

As we previously reported, Peterson -- aka "Da Bull" -- was found dead in October in Orlando ... just before he was set to compete in a top bodybuilding competition.

His coach and close friend Justin Miller said at the time Peterson was in great spirits just before his death, saying the bodybuilder was pumped for the show.

But, tragically, Miller said he found Peterson face down on the floor of his hotel room before the bodybuilder was able to compete. Medical personnel was unable to save him, Miller said.

Peterson was a star on the bodybuilding circuit ... he won the Classic Physique competition at the 2019 Arnold Classic and competed in the Olympia four times.

Chiefs linebacker Willie Gay will play in K.C.'s huge playoff game against the Buffalo Bills despite being arrested this week ... Andy Reid just announced.

The Chiefs' head coach told media members that Gay practiced on Friday ... and will suit up for the team on Sunday even though he was just in a Kansas jail cell less than 24 hours ago.

As for why, Reid said, "I decided he'd play. I'm not going to get into conversations. But I decided that after just hearing some of the information there."

As we reported, Gay was arrested just before midnight on Wednesday ... after he was accused of breaking a vacuum and other items during an argument with the mother of his child in Overland Park.

Gay was hit with a charge of misdemeanor criminal damage ... though he pled not guilty in court hours later -- and was eventually released.

Gay's rep, Maxx Lepselter, said in a statement just before his release from custody that he expected a quick resolution to the case.

"Likely just pays a fine and replaces vacuum," Lepselter said. "Nothing more, all should be resolved today with no further issues."

Jerry Jones says he will make no effort to block out the sun at AT&T Stadium ... despite the roaring glare costing his team points in their playoff loss last weekend.

The Dallas Cowboys owner was adamant there will be no addition of sun shades or a curtain to his domed palace in Arlington, explaining Friday on 105.3 The Fan, "that's about 10,000th on my list of things to worry about."

"We're not going to do anything with it," Jones said. "It goes both ways."

If you missed it, toward the end of the first half of the Cowboys' loss to the 49ers on Sunday, a Dak Prescott pass fell incomplete due to the sun.

The intended target, Cedrick Wilson, said the glare blinded him -- and robbed him of a completed pass that would have put Dallas in position to kick a field goal.

Most thought it would lead to Jones finally putting something up to block out the sun ... but he said emphatically on Friday he has no plans whatsoever to do that.

"I need to be worrying about something frankly that gets us back this week, next year, in the playoffs," Jones said.

Wrestling legend Sting just proved age ain't nothin' but a number -- the 62-year-old AEW star stole the show this week ... when he threw himself off the stage into another wrestler on a table!!

The insane moment happened during AEW Dynamite ... when Sting was originally scheduled for a tag team match against The Acclaimed -- featuring stars Anthony Bowens and Max Caster.

But, when Sting's tag team partner, Darby Allin, got hurt, the match turned into a handicap match ... meaning Sting had to fight both Bowens and Caster by himself.

The video is nuts -- the 37-year wrestling vet gets a running head start on stage and goes crashing down into Caster, who had been laid out on a table.

Keep in mind ... this spot in the match came after Sting had just wrestled two guys nearly half his age by himself -- for 10 minutes!!!

Even the most casual wrestling fan has to admit this was impressive ... especially considering other wrestling icons like Ric Flair and The Undertaker are retired.

AEW brought in Sting a little over a year ago, and his current on-screen role is supposed to be a mentor to Darby ... but it looks like Allin needs to be taking moves from the former WCW and WWE legend!!

The Los Angeles Lakers might be a dumpster fire right now, but that hasn't stopped fans from buying up all their gear ... with the Purple & Gold leading the NBA in merchandise sales this season.

The league just released its list of most popular fan purchases through the 2021-22 season so far ... and LeBron James sits at the top of the throne for player jersey sales, with the Lakers coming in at #1 for overall team merch sold on the NBA Store website.

It's pretty interesting, considering the Lake Show has stunk up the place this season -- they're 22-23 and head coach Frank Vogel is on the verge of losing his job.

But, it's clear fans aren't going anywhere ... stocking up on their swag as the team falls apart.

Stephen Curry comes in at #2 in jersey sales, with Giannis Antetokounmpo, Kevin Durant and Luka Doncic rounding out the top 5.

Russell Westbrook -- who's had a pretty tough year -- didn't make the list ... but Anthony Davis was able to come in at #7.

The Dubs, Bucks, Nets and Celtics follow the Lakers in team sales.

Tom Brady's football career could be just days away from ending ... so says his ex-teammate Rob Ninkovich, who said this week he wouldn't be surprised if the QB retired after this season.

Ninkovich, who played eight years with Brady in New England, made the stunning claim on ESPN's "Get Up" ... saying if the Buccaneers lose this weekend, it could very well be the last game of Tom's historic career.

"It wouldn't surprise me if Tom just kind of walked away and do whatever he wants to do," the former Patriots linebacker said.

Of course, it would certainly shock the majority of NFL fans ... considering just how good Brady's been in Tampa.

In his two seasons in Florida, the 44-year-old has amassed 83 passing TDs and nearly 10,000 passing yards. He's also just three wins away from his EIGHTH Super Bowl ring.

Brady has also said repeatedly he can play until he's 50 years old -- which would be another six or seven seasons.

But, Ninkovich, who won two Super Bowls with Tom as a Patriot, said Brady's done everything he's needed to do on the field, and could call it a career after Sunday.

"It wouldn't shock me," he said.

The woman who flashed her boobs and sparked a bizarre altercation at a Supercross event says her inbox has been flooded with hate after the incident ... claiming she's gotten death threats on social media.

31-year-old Danae Mari spoke out about her viral moment in an interview with Adam22 on "No Jumper" this week ... saying she fully planned on getting hammered at the event in Anaheim earlier this month.

After pounding two tall boys and a flask of Fireball whiskey, Danae says it was time to free the nip ... and says everyone around her was loving her enthusiasm.

But, as we previously reported, a woman in the crowd took serious issue with Danae's antics ... confronting her and scolding her for flashing with kids present ... getting drinks thrown on her in the process.

FYI -- Danae adamantly denies seeing any kids near her before showing the goods ... and even admits she was too drunk to remember the incident with the other woman.

Danae says the feedback has been mostly positive in the days following the incident ... but there are some people who have crossed the line in voicing their displeasure in her actions.

"I see 80% are fans, and the other 20 (percent) just wanna kill me," she said. "Gotta love it. Death threats in the DMs."

Danae says she was simply going with the vibe when she decided to lift her shirt ... but had no idea her antics were being recorded.

Kendall Jenner has figured out a way to make frigid weather fun ... or at least fun to look at.

The reality star stopped ski traffic for sure -- and definitely snowboard traffic -- posting photos of her posing in a skimpy black bikini and black shades. Her caption ... “Wim Hof said ice baths” ... a reference to the extreme athlete and Dutch motivational speaker.

Wim is known for his ability to endure extremely code temperatures... and clearly, Kendall feels she can follow in his footsteps, with big boots that is.

Well ... maybe Kendall's inspired lots of others to do the same, because she got more than 9 million likes.

BTW ... she's a really good snowboarder as she proved hitting the slopes, before hitting up an Andy Warhol exhibit at a local art museum. She got a taste of Aspen too, dining at some local eateries.

Charles Barkley is so tired of the Lakers, he went on an epic rant on Thursday saying the team flat-out sucks and is a bunch of "cowards" and "wussies."

The "Inside the NBA" host held nothing back on the set of the insanely popular TNT hoops show ... railroading L.A. for its recent losses and the team's responses to them.

"The Lakers are such wussies," Barkley said, "and I only say wussies because I can't say the word I want to say."

"The way they have tried to throw Frank Vogel and Russell Westbrook under the bus is really pissing me off."

Ernie Johnson, the show's host, interrupted Charles ... reminding him that they had a scheduled guest about to come on, but CB wasn't about to let some interview stop him from going in on the Lakeshow.

Check out the clip ... Barkley responded to Johnson by saying, "The Lakers still suck when we get back from this interview."

Barkley went on to express his disgust for the Lakers' front office ... accusing it of "running and hiding" after putting together a crappy roster.

"I'm not going to sit at like all these clowns on other networks that got they heads up the Lakers booties," Barkley said.

"The people up top who put that trash together are running and hiding like cowards. You put all them old geezers out there. The best guy, other than LeBron, for the last month has been who? Stanley Johnson."

"It's ridiculous, man," an exasperated Barkley continued.

Charles ultimately said he doesn't care who wins or loses ... joking that he can't wait for the season to be over so he can golf and fish.

Memphis hoops head coach Penny Hardaway absolutely lost it on media members following yet another defeat ... imploring journalists to "stop asking me stupid f***ing questions."

The explosion all went down Thursday, just minutes after the Tigers lost to SMU -- their third straight L -- when Hardaway was asked, in part, if the game was "embarrassing."

"I think the one thing I can say to this media -- because this media gets kind of f***ed up sometimes when it comes to me," Hardaway said.

"We don't have our full roster. Y'all know we don't have our full roster. Stop asking me stupid f***ing questions about if I feel like I can do something."

Hardaway continued railing on the reporters for nearly a full minute ... adding, "Stop disrespecting me, bro. Like, don't do that. I work too f***ing hard. I work way too hard for that."

Hardaway -- who's been coaching at Memphis since 2018 and had NCAA Tournament aspirations before the year began -- then called some media members' articles "bulls***."

If you're wondering, Penny's Tigers are just 9-8 on the season now ... although, like Hardaway said in his tirade, they have been shorthanded for most of the year.

Players have been in and out of lineups due to COVID and injuries ... and Hardaway was forced to start a lineup of nearly all freshmen against SMU.

Dwayne Haskins' wife is off the hook in her domestic violence case ... TMZ Sports has learned the felony charge against her was dropped this month.

Court records show Kalabrya Gondrezick-Haskins' case was dismissed on Jan. 10. We reached out to the Clark County District Attorney's Office multiple times for comment, but never heard word back.

As we previously reported, Kalabrya had been accused of causing "substantial" injuries to Dwayne during an altercation in Las Vegas back in July.

In a police report, cops said they were called to The Cosmopolitan to investigate claims that Kalabrya had attacked the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback in their hotel room.

In the docs, cops noted Dwayne had a busted lip that needed stitches, as well as a missing tooth -- and they eventually arrested Kalabrya.

In police video we obtained, you can see she wasn't pleased about being taken into custody ... asking officers inside of the hotel, "Are you serious?! So, I'm under arrest?!"

Kalabrya -- who said in the docs she and Dwayne had been married since March 2021 -- was later charged with felony domestic violence battery.

We reached out to Kalabrya's attorney for comment on the disposition of the case, but so far, no word back yet.

Dak Prescott's foot-in-mouth moment following the Cowboys' loss on Sunday just cost him serious cash ... 'cause the NFL announced Thursday it's fining the Dallas QB $25K after he praised fans for throwing trash at refs.

Following a controversial end to the Cowboys vs. 49ers game at AT&T Stadium ... fans hurled garbage at officials as they exited the field of play.

One bottle actually hit Cowboys star pass rusher Demarcus Lawrence ... and when Dak was informed that the debris-throwing was actually aimed at umps, he commended the acts.

"S***," Prescott said. "Credit to them, then."

Dak was immediately panned for the comments -- and the criticism grew so loud, he eventually apologized.

"I deeply regret the comments I made regarding the officials after the game on Sunday," the 28-year-old said. "I was caught up in the emotion of a disappointing loss and my words were uncalled for and unfair."

He continued, "The safety of everyone who attends a game or participates on the field of a sporting event is a very serious matter."

"That was a mistake on my behalf, and I am sorry."

The days of Angel Hernandez makin' you pull out your hair may soon be over ... 'cause Major League Baseball is instituting robot umpires for the 2022 Triple-A season -- moving one big step closer to an eventually automated strike zone in The Show.

MLB let the cat out of the bag on the plans this week ... posting a notice on its website seeking seasonal employees to operate the automated ball-strike system at the highest level of MILB.

According to the Associated Press, 14 teams will be looking to fill openings at their respective ballparks.

The development comes just two years after the Independent Atlantic League became the first American pro baseball league to let a computer call balls and strikes.

It's something that many players and fans have been calling for forever ... and it would eliminate the inconsistent strike zones.

After taking a year off because of the pandemic, robots were used in Low-A ball (Southeast League) at a majority of ballparks in 2021.

The Major League Baseball Umpires Association did agree in 2020 to assist and cooperate with MLB commissioner, Rob Manfred, if he decided to ultimately institute change at the major league level.

As for will we see them next season on opening day -- MLB did say the robot umps will be used at some spring training ballparks ... and didn't rule out the possibility of them being used at non-MLB venues.

Tyler Herro's girlfriend just poured her heart out for his 22nd birthday ... penning an emotional tribute to the Miami Heat baller on his big day.

"Happy birthday to my best friend, boyfriend, baby daddy, my dawg, my rock, my twin, my soulmate, my heart," Katya Elise Henry said on Instagram ... sharing a pic of the couple getting cozy on a boat in South Beach.

"I am so proud of the man and daddy to Zya you’ve become. You are wise beyond your years, it’s my favorite thing about you."

KEH gushes over Herro as the "most genuine, giving, loving, smart, driven, hard working" and "most focused" guy she's ever met ... all while being a dedicated father and partner.

"This man does it all," she added. "I love doing life with you! You are so appreciated and I am so grateful for your love. You deserve everything and more. I love tfffff out of you Tyler ❤️"

Herro and Henry became an item early in 2020 ... with the sharp-shooter seemingly shooting his shot on social media. They've been inseparable ever since ... and welcomed their daughter in September 2021.

A Wisconsin Badgers hoops fan has been banned from buying tickets to the school's sporting events ... after making disgusting slant-eye gestures toward Northwestern students during a game.

The incident happened during Tuesday's matchup at Welsh-Ryan Arena in Illinois ... when a man in Wisconsin colors was recorded on video standing up and taunting the Northwestern student section with the middle finger and anti-Asian gesture.

The fan recording the incident was in complete shock ... as well as the targeted students, who appeared to be of Asian descent.

The man was eventually kicked out of the arena by security ... and as he was leaving, the guy continued to make the racist gesture as the Northwestern students cheered for his departure.

The Univ. of Wisconsin thanked Northwestern for removing the Badgers fan after the offensive act ... and announced on Thursday that he's no longer welcome at Badger sporting events.

"We join with @UWBadgers and all #Badgers in condemning the abhorrent anti-Asian actions of an attendee at the Northwestern game this week," the school said in a statement.