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Aaron Rodgers says he still loves Shailene Woodley ... even though the couple has broke off their engagement and ended their romantic relationship.

The Green Bay Packers star penned the mushy message to his ex in a lengthy social media post late Monday night -- saying all kinds of nice things about the actress just days after their breakup.

"Thanks for letting me chase after you the first couple months after we met, and finally letting me catch up to you and be a part of your life," Rodgers wrote in the note.

"Thanks for always having my back, for the incredible kindness you show me and everyone you meet, and for showing me what unconditional love looks like, I love you and am grateful for you."

Rodgers attached a photo of him and Woodley snuggling on a couch to the message.

Rodgers and Woodley ended things very recently ... with one report saying the quarterback got "cold feet" over their upcoming nuptials. The report added that Woodley felt Rodgers "neglected their relationship."

The two had dated for around two years -- with Rodgers announcing their engagement in Feb. 2021.

Rodgers' message Monday night wasn't just aimed at Woodley, he also complimented his Packers teammates and thanked them for the year.

Rodgers ended his note by urging his fans to "spread love and gratitude."

Unclear if the message is a precursor to the quarterback's retirement from football ... but Rodgers has said he's expecting to make a decision about his future very soon.

NFL legend Shannon Sharpe supports Kanye West's Donda Sports bid to buy the Broncos -- where the former great TE starred -- telling TMZ Sports the league must have minorities in ownership positions.

We talked to Shannon as he was leaving SoFi Stadium after the Super Bowl ... and the HOF'er told us he supports Ye -- and other prominent Black men and women -- buying teams.

"I'd be happy, if a minority, Robert Smith, I see Byron Allen is interested," Sharpe said. "I'm all for it."

"That’s the organization that I played 12 years for. I have a lot of respect for the Bowlen family. They did a great job with me and my family."

All the talk comes from a social media message from Antonio Brown, who describes himself as Donda Sports' president, claiming Ye's company wants to buy the Broncos.

Sharpe says if Kanye could find some investors, he'd support him making a play at owning the Broncos ... assuming he could get the necessary 75% approval from other owners.

But, West might not need anyone else. Forbes lists his net worth at $1.8 billion ... but during a recent interview, Kanye claimed to be worth substantially more -- $10 BILLION.

Last year Forbes valued the Broncos at $3.75 billion.

As for Ye and AB ... they've been nearly inseparable since connecting after Brown's unceremonious exit from the Tampa Bay Bucs in January.

Kanye seemed to embrace Brown ... and the two formed a close friendship and business relationship.

Bottom line ... regardless of how the NFL owners may feel about Kanye, AB, or Donda Sports, Shannon tells us money talks.

WWE Superstar The Miz just announced on Monday Night Raw who his tag team partner for WrestleMania will be ... and it's none other than YouTuber-turned-boxer Logan Paul!!

Miz was hosting his popular "Miz TV" show in front of a sold-out crowd in Columbia, South Carolina just minutes ago ... when WWE legend Rey Mysterio and his son, Dominik, interrupted him out of nowhere.

Of course, Miz didn't appreciate the Mysterios crashing his show ... and ultimately issued a challenge to fight them in a match on the grandest stage of them all -- WrestleMania.

Check out the clip -- Miz proposes the tag team match and introduces Logan Paul as his surprise partner.

"Wrestlemania just got more stupendous," one of the commentators said.

Much of the WWE universe was in shock to see LP ... who's made a name for himself in a different kinda combat.

But the Miz was overjoyed to have Paul by his side ... and the newly formed duo didn't wait until Mania to get things started with the Mysterios.

Miz and Paul ambushed Rey and Dominik ... hitting both of them with Miz's signature "skull-crushing finale" finisher.

Juwan Howard has been punished for smacking an opposing coach during a wild altercation over the weekend ... with Michigan reportedly banning the guy from the Wolverines' sidelines for the rest of the regular season.

Yahoo Sports' Dan Wetzel just reported the news ... one day after Howard kicked off a brawl at the end of the Michigan vs. Wisconsin game by taking a swipe at Badgers assistant Joe Krabbenhoft.

The ban would effectively be a 5-game suspension for Howard ... as the Wolverines have just five contests left before they play in the postseason Big 10 Tournament.

As we previously reported, Howard told media members following the altercation that he got aggressive because Wisconsin head coach Greg Gard had put his hands on him first.

"I think that was very uncalled for, for him to touch me," Howard said after the game, "as we were verbalizing and communicating with one another. So, that's what ended up happening."

Many had speculated Howard would be banned for longer -- and, considering the melee ended up being very, very ugly, some thought it could cost the 49-year-old his job.

Michigan, meanwhile, is 14-11 this season.

Van Jefferson's Super Bowl baby finally has a name ... and fittingly, it's "Champ."

After days of deliberating, the Los Angeles Rams wide receiver said on "The Adam Schefter Podcast" this week that he and his wife, Samaria, just settled on the name.

"Champ Curtis Jefferson," Van said. "That's the name we got."

Of course, it's an extremely fitting name, considering the baby was born just minutes after Jefferson and the Rams were crowned World Champions -- but it certainly took a while for Van and his wife to land on the name.

Jefferson had told us at the Super Bowl parade last week that the couple was actually considering "Wynn" or "Miles" ... but he explained he just ultimately couldn't pass on "Champ."

"We just looked it up and 'Champ' is like a warrior," Van said, "and my wife is a warrior."

Van ain't lying ... you'll recall, Samaria was actually stretchered out of SoFi Stadium during the Rams' win over the Bengals on Sunday so she could have the child.

Van said he had to watch the birth of the baby boy on FaceTime because of horrific traffic after the game -- but he said he was so grateful for his wife and her efforts on the big day, he bought her a Range Rover.

Medina Spirit has been stripped of his 2021 Kentucky Derby title ... officials announced Monday the horse has been officially disqualified following a hearing last week.

In a statement, Kentucky horse racing stewards said Medina Spirit did have the banned substance betamethasone in his blood on race day -- a huge no-no -- and announced second-place finisher Mandaloun will now be recognized as the race's winner going forward.

Officials also announced Bob Baffert, Medina Spirit's trainer, has now been suspended 90 days from all Kentucky racing facilities and fined $7,500 because of the findings.

Baffert will have the opportunity to appeal the ban -- which officials said will last from March 8 through June 5.

The ruling means Baffert will now have to win another Derby title to regain the crown of winningest trainer in the race's history (Medina Spirit's victory had given him seven total).

Hornets star LaMelo Ball received a custom 17-carat diamond pendant from Puma -- celebrating his first All-Star appearance -- and we're told the pendant is worth $80k!!

TMZ Sports has learned Puma hit up renowned jeweler Jason of Beverly Hills in L.A. ... and asked him to create the super-flashy piece of bling for Ball to rock at ASW.

Of course, Ball is signed to Puma ... so when news broke 20-year-old Ball was selected to play in the game in Cleveland they wanted to make sure LaMelo showed up and showed out all weekend.

Check out the video, the chain features 17 carats of flawless white diamonds set into yellow and white gold.

If you look closely ... you can see the iconic Puma logo as well as the words "All-Star" in honor of LaMelo's first appearance in the NBA's showcase of elites.

FYI, at age 20, LaMelo became the fourth-youngest player to ever participate in the game -- behind LeBron James (20 years, 52 days old), Magic Johnson (20 years, 173 days old), and the late Kobe Bryant who did it at just 19 years old.

We're told Ball was gifted the serious drip in Cleveland ... just in time for him to showcase the ice to his fellow peers and fans.

Antonio Brown just posted an MRI of his injured ankle ... saying it proves his former Buccaneers team tried to "intentionally" hurt him during the infamous game against the Jets earlier this year.

Brown shared the images on his social media page ... recording what appeared to be a doctor breaking down his testing results.

In the footage, a man can be heard explaining to Brown that he had a bone spur and other issues in his ankle -- pointing out the ailments on a laptop screen.

AB seems to think the scan and the expert's words helped prove Bruce Arians and Tampa Bay tried to screw him over during the Bucs vs. Jets game at MetLife Stadium ... writing on the images, "They tried to hurt me intentionally @buccaneers."

"Sent me out there after knowing I was still hurt."

Brown then claimed Tom Brady was in on it all -- saying his former quarterback convinced him to play on the injured leg by promising him targets.

"He didn't throw it," Brown said. "Imagine being hurt having to play through this and being lied too."

"Coach said if I couldn't run on this get the f*** out of here. F*** all you MF."

As we reported, Brown famously threw a temper tantrum on the sideline during the Bucs' win over the Jets in New York -- saying Arians the Bucs tried to force him to play despite his injury.

Brown was eventually was booted off the team over it all ... but he and his attorney have since said they're considering suing the Bucs. Arians and the Bucs have denied any wrongdoing.

The Rock's XFL is making huge moves -- the resurrected football organization is officially partnering with the NFL to help bring positive change to the sport of football ... the league announced Monday.

The new agreement will help both organizations discover innovative ways to improve the game by testing new physical and mental programs for players in the XFL ... as well as trying new rules and other ways to enhance the gameday experience.

In other words, the XFL will essentially be the NFL's guinea pig to see how the game can get better.

The Rock's partner, Dany Garcia, spoke about the big news ... saying, "We are extremely pleased to collaborate with the NFL in these important areas."

"We are bringing forward an XFL that is progressive and forward-thinking when it comes to innovation, leveraging the newest technology to enhance gameday experience."

She added ... "We have an open field for innovative rules to enhance in-game access. Sharing insights and practices between the XFL and NFL will do a tremendous amount of good for the game of football and support the player ecosystem overall."

It's a drastic change from the XFL's previous business model under Vince McMahon ... which originally sought out to be an NFL competitor before eventually declaring for bankruptcy in 2020.

Patrick Mahomes ... elite QB AND elite party thrower?!?

The NFL superstar proved over the weekend that he can really do it all ... helping put on a party for his daughter's first birthday that was extravagant!!

Mahomes and his fiancée, Brittany Matthews, shared pics and videos from the bash on Sunday -- and you can see, it was incredible.

Baby Sterling Skye got tons of pink and yellow balloons, a bunch of butterfly decorations, and so, so much more.

There was a cotton candy station, a ball pit, cake -- and a grip of other touches that highlighted Sterling's first big day.

Patrick also celebrated the occasion with a mushy post on his Instagram, writing, "My ❤️ turns 1 today! Daddy loves you!"

Brittany added in a post of her own, "My Ster Girl is ONE! I can’t believe it🥺💕 YOU my sweet girl deserve the world!!"

"Your Daddy & I love you more & more everyday, we can not wait to see where this life takes you & all the things you will conquer! #stersworld"

The turnout for the party looked great as friends and family of the Chiefs quarterback shared laughs and smiles throughout the day.

Disturbing moment during a junior hockey game ... a player sucker-punched an official in the face, and the player has now been hit with a lifetime ban.

It all went down in the United States Premier Hockey League -- a developmental league for amateurs -- when a member of the South Shore Kings got frustrated with one of the refs.

Check out the clip, the official appears ticked off by something the player did and motions to send him to the penalty box.

That's when things went south ... 'cause as the player began skating off the ice, he punched the referee in the face, dropping him to the ice.

The other refs restored order ... and the official who was punched was helped back onto his skates -- but the damage had already been done.

FYI, Junior Hockey is typically played after high school, but before college.

The commissioner for the USPHL released a statement saying, "The action taken today by a USPHL player is completely unacceptable in the USPHL. The USPHL has zero tolerance for any player striking any official, at any time."

He continued ... "The player in question’s actions have led to a lifetime ban."

Michael Jordan shared a special moment with Kobe Bryant's wife at the All-Star Game on Sunday ... with MJ embracing Vanessa after the Lakers legend was honored during halftime.

The Black Mamba received a powerful ovation as members of the league's 75th-anniversary team were recognized in Cleveland ... and Vanessa was visibly overcome with emotion as her husband was featured on the scoreboard.

Jordan, Jerry West and Lakers GM/Kobe's longtime agent Rob Pelinka were spotted alongside Vanessa during the festivities ... as #23 went up and gave her a big hug and chatted with her on the court.

Kobe's presence was felt throughout the night ... as Vanessa was in attendance to hand Chris Paul the WNBA's first Kobe and Gigi Bryant Advocacy award, which honors players for their contributions to women's hoops.

Stephen Curry won the newly-designed Kobe Bryant All-Star MVP award ... after nailing 16 3-pointers to help Team LeBron beat Team Durant, 163-160.

The exchange between MJ and Vanessa was truly emotional for fans to watch -- Jordan and Kobe were close, and the Bulls legend even gave a tearful speech at Bryant's service in 2020.

Adele is trying to tune out any distractions in her life ... even cameras that are right up in her face!

Adele was at the NBA All-Star Game Sunday night -- no doubt showing support for BF Rich Paul -- and a camera crew unsurprisingly got a shot of her.

The cameras got super close to her, but Adele just pretended they weren't there ... looking away to either side. The shot lasted an uncomfortably long time. Typically the director stays on the shot until the person they're shooting acknowledges it, but that never happened.

Adele hasn't been seen in public much since the cancellation of her Vegas residency... where she went online and apologized -- breaking the news just one day before the first show would begin.

She's mostly been on the down-low since the cancellation, with the exception of a night out at a gay bar in London.

This was a big night for Rich, and Adele was there to support him and watch the game. They were seated next to another musical icon -- Mary J. Blige.

Olympic skier Remi Lindholm says it was so cold during a race at the Games in Beijing over the weekend ... his penis literally froze while he was competing.

Lindholm says the horrifying injury happened during Saturday's men's 50km mass start event ... where temps dipped so low, officials actually delayed the start and even shortened the race's overall distance to 30km to try to keep competitors safe.

The precautions, though, clearly didn't help Lindholm too much ... because he said after spending over an hour racing on the course, his junk turned into a popsicle.

"You can guess which body part was a little bit frozen when I finished," Lindholm told reporters after the race. "It was one of the worst competitions I've been in."

Lindholm said he needed a heat pack to thaw everything out -- but added that once he got warm, "the pain was unbearable."

The worst part for Lindholm? His efforts only resulted in a 28th place finish.

Turns out, this was not the first time Lindholm has experienced the terrifying race wound -- he said it happened to him in a race in Finland in 2021.

Quinton Aaron, best known for his role in "The Blind Side," has dropped a whopping 100 pounds!!!

Quinton tells TMZ ... he gained quite a bit of weight during the pandemic, binge eating at home and developing a hankering for chocolate ... something he didn't have before the virus hit.

He says he would start his morning by eating 2 jumbo-sized KitKat packs and 2 Reese's packs. If he went out to eat, he would end his meal with a chocolate dessert. He also ate a lot of bread ... sometimes 2 large sandwiches in one sitting.

Quinton tells us ... he wanted to make a change because he has a lot of professional goals with his production company and music.

"I used the new year as a way to get a new me," he says ... and that work paid off! He went from 559 pounds to 462 lbs.

He cut candy bars and bread from his diet. He's eating Cobb salads for lunch and sticking to a keto diet ... along with fasting. He's also been walking and doing stretching exercises.

Now, he says he wants to drop another 64 lbs by May 10 to honor his late mom on her birthday -- which was his weight during "The Blind Side" movie.

His overall goal is to get between 300-325 pounds.

Macy Gray’s the latest to try something different with the National Anthem during the NBA All-Star weekend ... and yet again, it evoked some would-be chuckles from the players.

The Grammy-winning singer did a take on the ‘Star-Spangled Banner’ Sunday ahead of tip-off for the All-Star game, and it definitely conjured up memories of Fergie from 4 years ago ... when she did something similar during her appearance.

Just like then, MG’s rendition now is getting widely mocked -- but more importantly, it’s causing the same sorts of reactions among the guys themselves, most notably ... LeBron James, who was seen apparently fighting back laughter when the camera panned to him.

He was standing next to Steph Curry, who kept his composure this time ... and you can see LBJ with a big grin on his face as Macy sings. When he looks up to the Jumbotron and sees his reaction was captured, he bows his head in embarrassment -- trying to hide.

He wasn’t the only one who was left stunned by the show -- one Bill Murray was in the crowd as well, and he seemed dumbfounded by what he was hearing.

Others, too, looked on with confusion ... maybe even terror!

Still, Macy powered through it ... and ended with one of the shortest “brave” refrains we’ve ever heard. She got a round of applause, obviously, and was graceful upon completion.

Funny enough, she’s actually had some thoughts on Old Glory of late ... suggesting the flag needs to be redesigned to reflect modern-day America.