TMZ Sports - Page 50

Little People of America -- regarded as the largest dwarfism support organization in the world -- is going after Jerry Jones following his use of the m-word on Tuesday ... demanding he issue an apology immediately.

The LPA slammed the Cowboys owner in a statement to TMZ Sports ... just hours after the 79-year-old used the term while making a joke to a group of media members at the first day of Dallas Cowboys training camp in Oxnard, Calif.

"M***** is a term that has widely been known to be derogatory for years and should be common knowledge to anyone in the public arena, such as Jerry Jones," the LPA said. "Ignorance at this point is simply not an excuse. Any use of this disparaging slur along with suggestions or insinuations that our stature exists for amusement is deplorable and inexcusable."

Jones used the term while talking about Larry Lacewell -- the Cowboys' longtime Director of College and Pro Scouting, who passed away at 85 years old in May.

Jones said he wanted to "get me somebody, a m*****" to dress like Lacewell and stand next to him out at practices.

The LPA said Jones' use of the word perpetuates "harmful stereotypes" -- and is now imploring him to say sorry.

"Those who use the term m***** or any terminology that further stigmatizes people born with dwarfism are asked to educate themselves to eradicate this word," the org. said. "Little People of America is asking Jerry Jones to issue an apology and vow to use appropriate terminology rooted in respect and dignity going forward."

So far, no comment yet from Jones or the Cowboys since he made the remark.

Aaron Rodgers made quite the entrance at Packers camp on Tuesday ... strollin' into the building looking exactly like Nicolas Cage's character in "Con Air!!"

Check out video of A-Rodge heading into the Green Bay facility to begin his 18th season in the NFL -- dude was a clone of Cameron Poe.

The 38-year-old rocked long hair, a white tank top and blue jeans ... just like Cage in the 1997 action thriller.

And, yes, this all did appear to be planned ... 'cause Rodgers used famous quotes from the flick when throwing up pics of his Day 1 'fit on his Instagram.

"#greatestactorofalltime," Rodgers said. "What do you think I'm gonna do? I'm gonna save the f***in' day! #cameronpoe #day1 #year18"

Of course, Rodgers has been known to cause stirs with his training camp attire -- just last year, he headed into practice wearing a "The Office" t-shirt and some sick shades.

That look eventually led to one of Rodgers' best career seasons -- can the "Con Air" copy come through similarly?

Floyd Mayweather and Conor McGregor are reportedly "very close" to inking a deal to once again meet in the boxing ring, and Dana White has a thought -- "BULLS**T!"

TMZ Sports talked to the UFC President on Tuesday, and asked about a report out of the UK stating the two megastars were all but set to rematch in the near future.

"It's total bullshit!" White told us, adding, "That story came from a paper called The Daily Mirror which is a tabloid in Europe. It's total bulls**t!"

(Note: The Sun first reported the story. Daily Mail and The Mirror -- two separate outlets -- published stories referencing the initial Sun report.)

And, Dana's more than a spectator ... he's an interested party. Conor is under contract with the UFC ... meaning if he wants to box Floyd, the UFC honcho must be involved. Clearly, White -- who has a good relationship with Mayweather -- says it ain't happening ... at least not now.

Of course, Conor and Floyd boxed in August 2017 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas ... in what was one of the most promoted and talked about fights in the history of combat sports.

Mayweather, 49-0 in the ring at the time, won by TKO in the 10th round. It was McGregor's first time in a professional boxing match.

Since, Floyd retired after winning his 50th pro fight ... but he's still taken exhibition bouts against guys like Logan Paul.

As for Conor, he broke his leg last summer fighting Dustin Poirier, and while he's getting close to being fully recovered, he isn't there yet.

We also talked to Dana about a highly anticipated rematch that we definitely know is happening this weekend at UFC 276 ... Amanda Nunes vs. Julianna Pena II!

The Venezuelan Vixen forced The Lioness to tap in the 2nd round of their UFC 269 title fight ... and White believes the rematch isn't only one of the biggest fights in the history of women's MMA, but will have major ramifications on both their legacies.

We also chopped it up about Brandon Moreno and Kai Kara-France fighting for the flyweight interim title ... and Dana gives us his pick for a sleeper fight.

UFC 277 goes down Saturday night from Dallas, TX on ESPN+.

Before this handsome guy turned into a professional basketball player, he was just a typical preteen with exceptional athletic abilities, playing basketball in his backyard and growing up near Seattle, Washington.

After having a successful high school career, this dedicated kid more than earned his spot on the UCLA college basketball team but only played for one season before making his way to the NBA. He played for the Minnesota Timberwolves and currently plays for the Chicago Bulls.

Need one more clue? He won the "Slam Dunk Contest" back in 2015, making him the youngest champion since Kobe Bryant's 1997 win.

Kevin Hart had a priceless reaction to ex-NFL player Channing Crowder's appreciation for nudist colonies ... going full roastmaster mode and clowning the dude on his own show!!

The ex-Dolphins linebacker opened up on his "The Pivot" podcast about how he and his wife of 11 years, Aja, like to take annual exhibitionist trips ... saying, "Once a year, we go to a nudist colony. We go to a place where like you walk in and everybody just gets naked and walks around."

Hart -- who was a guest on the podcast -- looked at CC in complete disbelief ... and asked, "You hear whatchu saying out loud, brother?!"

"Y'all just ... just hanging out, or y'all f***ing these people?"

Crowder admits there are some swingers around when they take their trips ... but explains they don't participate, they just "like being around naked people together."

When CC asks Hart if he's into that kinda stuff ... he shuts down the idea.

"To be honest with you, I have no desire to be around a bunch of people I don't know just sitting there naked," Hart said.

Hart then ends the funny convo with a joke, saying "I'm willing to bet a good number it ain't a lot of put-together people going through this little stage."

Jerry Jones has just put his foot in his mouth at the opening day of Dallas Cowboys training camp ... using an offensive term for little people while addressing a throng of media members.

The team's owner was remembering the late Larry Lacewell -- the Cowboys' longtime Director of College and Pro Scouting -- when he used the m-word.

"Lace held court out here," Jones said while speaking about his former employee who passed away at 85 years old in May. "I'm going to get me somebody, a m*****, to stand up there with me and dress him up like Lace and think Lace is still out here helping us. Look at the practice with us."

"But, you know, we all need our props. A little memory that goes with him."

When saying the term, Jones -- who's 79 years old -- also used a hand gesture signaling he wanted someone smaller in stature.

If you're unfamiliar, the m-word has been deemed a derogatory slur by the Little People of America, who have urged people to stop using the word for nearly a decade.

We've reached out to the LPA for comment, but so far, no word back yet.

Sean Avery and his model wife, Hilary Rhoda, are headed toward splitsville ... she just filed for divorce from the ex-NHL player, TMZ Sports has learned.

Rhoda, who's made multiple appearances in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues, filed the court docs in Los Angeles this week ... citing "irreconcilable differences."

The two -- who got married back in 2015 -- officially separated just days ago on July 17, according to the court docs.

Rhoda -- who has one 2-year-old child with Avery -- wants physical custody of their son but checked the box to share legal custody with Sean.

She also indicated the couple signed a prenuptial agreement.

42-year-old Avery -- who played 10 seasons in the NHL before retiring in 2012 -- had shown no signs of trouble brewing in his relationship with Rhoda ... in fact, back in April, he penned a sweet birthday message to her on his social media page.

"Happy Birthday to the most beautiful woman in the world who continues to evolve as a creative and, more importantly, an incredible mother," he wrote.

Seattle Seahawks running back Chris Carson is walking away from the NFL -- the 27-year-old is reportedly retiring due to a neck injury.

Carson suffered the injury during Week 4 of the 2021 season ... and has been unable to suit up for a game since.

NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport says Carson was working out in hopes of getting better ... but at this point, there hasn't been enough progress.

The report states Carson will not officially file his paperwork ... just in case he "dramatically" improves at some point.

The Seahawks will release Carson with a failed physical designation, which will help him to receive millions in injury protection benefits, Rap says.

If this is really the end, Carson finishes his career with more than 3,500 rushing yards and 24 touchdowns ... and 804 yards and 7 TDs through the air.

The former Oklahoma State star raked in roughly $9.4 million over the course of his career.

Jim Harbaugh -- fiercely against abortion -- says he'd be willing to raise the baby of any of his Univ. of Michigan football players, if they had an unplanned pregnancy, and the couple decided to have the baby.

"I've told [them] the same thing I tell my kids, boys, the girls, same thing I tell our players, our staff members," Harbaugh said on Saturday, "I encourage them if they have a pregnancy that wasn't planned, to go through with it, go through with it," Harbaugh told ESPN's Gene Wojchiechowski.

"Let that unborn child be born, and if at that time, you don't feel like you can care for it, you don't have the means or the wherewithal, then Sarah and I will take that baby."

The Wolverines head coach -- who signed a $36.7 million extension in February -- was the keynote speaker at a recent "Right To Life" event.

During the anti-abortion speech, 58-year-old Harbaugh spoke about having the "courage to let the unborn be born."

As for why he chose to speak out about the controversial topic, Jim says while it may be difficult, it's an incredibly important issue for America.

"I just think this issue of life, save a life, the abortion issue is one that is so big that it needs to be talked about," Harbaugh said.

"It's a life or death type of issue and I believe in and I respect people's views but let's discuss it because there's passion on both sides of this issue."

The Cincinnati Bengals will be without superstar quarterback Joe Burrow as training camp kicks off -- the signal-caller is going under the knife to have his appendix removed.

The news broke just minutes ago ... with Ian Rapoport saying #9 will miss a bit of time due to the procedure.

Burrow showed up at the Bengals facility over the weekend to work out alongside rookies and injured players ... and Tuesday marks the first official day of camp.

The news comes amid contract talks for the 25-year-old ... with team president Mike Brown saying the focus is to give him an extension before his deal runs out.

While it's a slight bummer for Bengals fans, Rap says the decision was made based on the understanding it would be better to get the appendectomy out of the way sooner than later.

Makes sense -- the Bengals are coming off their most successful season in forever ... and are hoping to make another run at the Super Bowl this season.

Hope Solo has pleaded guilty to DWI -- over three months after she was arrested in North Carolina for driving while intoxicated with her children in the car.

The former U.S. women's national team goalkeeper made the plea in a Forsyth County courtroom on Monday after cutting a deal with prosecutors, TMZ Sports has confirmed.

In exchange for the guilty plea, we're told the two other charges she was facing in the case -- one count of child abuse and one count of resisting arrest -- were dismissed.

The judge gave Solo a 24-month suspended sentence. She was also ordered to pay fines and fees, and comply with the terms of a substance abuse assessment.

As part of the sentence, we're told Solo has already completed a 30-day, in-patient rehabilitation program at the Hope Valley treatment facility in North Carolina earlier this summer.

Following the plea in court, Solo released a lengthy statement on her social media page ... admitting "I underestimated what a destructive part of my life alcohol had become."

"The upside of making a mistake this big is that hard lessons are learned quickly," the 40-year-old added. "Learning these lessons has been difficult, and at times, very painful."

"I continue to be a student of the greatest school called life and I will continue to learn and grow from these experiences. I will continue to gain empathy, knowledge, and stories to share."

"I consider this a gift to pass it on to others because pain shared is pain lessened."

We broke the story ... Solo was arrested back on March 31 after cops say they found her passed out behind the wheel of her car in a Walmart parking lot while her two children were in the vehicle with her. Cops say during the stop, she displayed signs of impairment and reeked of booze. They added that she had refused sobriety tests at the scene.

More legal trouble for former Las Vegas Raiders first-round pick Damon Arnette ... he was just arrested again -- this time after cops say they found a cocaine-like substance in his pocket during a traffic stop.

According to police documents, obtained by TMZ Sports, Arnette was pulled over twice in his gray Dodger Charger on Monday night/Tuesday morning in Miami Beach, Fl.

During the first stop, which police say occurred at around 8:56 PM on Monday, cops say in the documents they found Arnette had been driving on a suspended license -- and issued him a citation.

According to the docs, cops say they told him he was not permitted to drive the vehicle until his license was reinstated -- though they did say they "permitted another licensed driver to drive the vehicle from the traffic stop."

Cops, though, claim in the documents that hours later -- at around 12:48 AM on Tuesday -- they noticed Arnette driving the same car, so they pulled him over again.

During that stop, cops said in the docs as soon as they verified he was, in fact, the driver of the car -- they placed him under arrest and cited him for knowingly driving with a suspended license.

But, during the arrest, cops say they searched Arnette's person, and found a small baggie "containing white powdery substance consistent with that of cocaine" in his front pants pocket.

They say they also found a straw "that was cut into a small piece resembling a device that is common for cocaine usage."

Jail records show Arnette was booked at 3:09 AM on three charges -- possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and driving on a suspended license. It's unclear if he's bonded out yet.

Of course, this is not the first run-in with the law Arnette has faced since he was drafted into the NFL -- you'll recall, he was arrested in Vegas back in January 2022 after he allegedly threatened a valet with a gun.

Arnette was released by the Kansas City Chiefs immediately following that arrest. He had previously been cut by the Raiders in 2021 after a video appearing to show him holding guns while making threats had surfaced.

25-year-old Arnette has played in just 13 total games since he was drafted. He's currently an NFL free agent.

A couple of Red Sox fans turned Fenway Park into their own Octagon during Monday night's game ... with two men getting into a violent altercation on the ground -- forcing security to get involved.

The incident went down as Boston hosted the Cleveland Guardians ... and it all seemingly got started over a beverage.

The person who posted the altercation claims the man in red spilled a drink on the fan in white ... which led to both guys duking it out on the stadium floor.

The fan in white throws several punches as the man in red holds him down on the concrete ... before two security guards intervene and diffuse the situation.

No word on whether the guys were arrested -- the video cuts off as the guards swoop in and hold them back.

One fan is heard yelling, "let's f***ing go, woo!!" as the altercation unfolds ... with others watching the action in the distance.

A soccer player tragically died weeks after he was brutally attacked by multiple people on the pitch during a soccer match in Oxnard, California earlier this month.

The man was only 29.

According to the NY Post, the brawl happened around 11 AM on July 10th at Oxnard High School -- about 90 minutes west of downtown Los Angeles -- when Misael Sanchez was allegedly beaten by opposing players and spectators after a dispute over a referee's call.

The assault left Sanchez severely injured and unresponsive on the field. EMT took him to a local hospital, the Ventura County Medical Center.

Sadly, 15 days later the family announced Sanchez died. The cause of death will be determined during an autopsy.

"My family is heartbroken and still in disbelief, as we expected a bright future for him," the family said on Monday via GoFundMe.

"Misael was assaulted by multiple assailants on July 10, 2022, and left in critical condition. We were not ready for this type of goodbye."

The family is now asking for prayers and for any donations to cover Sanchez's funeral.

"Thank you for the love, support and prayers."

Brittney Griner spoke with a media member on Tuesday for the first time since she was arrested back in February in Russia ... saying she had "no complaints" about her detention and adding that she wanted to wish her wife "good luck on the bar exam."

Griner -- who was back in court Tuesday for yet another hearing in her drug case -- spoke with an ABC News producer from behind bars inside the Moscow courtroom.

The outlet recorded the conversation, and in the audio, you can hear Griner calmly send the message to Cherelle Griner (who's been studying to become a lawyer) -- while adding she's "just waiting patiently" for a resolution in her drug case.

Brittney held up a photo of Cherelle minutes before the chat with the reporter. She also wore a sweatshirt that had "Black Lives Are Loved" written on it.

During the hearing, according to Reuters, Griner's legal team argued the WNBA star had used medical cannabis to help deal with her injuries -- and was not using the drug recreationally.

As we reported, Griner has pled guilty to charges that she brought hashish oil in her luggage to a Moscow airport back in February -- though she said she had no intention of breaking Russian law.

One of Ukraine's Olympic heroes is putting on his cape again by sacrificing his gymnastic silver medal in order to help his country fend off the Russian invaders.

Ruslan Mezentsev put his medal -- earned during the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney -- on the auction block, and TMZ Sports has learned it's now sold for $14,438.

Bidding just ended on July 21, and as we first reported ... Ruslan had pledged to donate all the money to Ukraine, to help fund his homeland's war efforts against Russia. We're told the auction house even donated the buyer's premium.

The now 41-year-old Olympian was a member of his country's men's team when they competed in the all-around competition back in 2000. Ruslan participated in the floor exercise, pommel horse, and still rings.

Ultimately, he helped his team take home the silver medal by scoring 28.725 and bringing the team's total 230.306. The Ukrainians finished just 1.613 points behind China, which won the gold medal.

Now, that silver medal is in the hands of an anonymous bidder ... and Ruslan, who is originally from a town called Kropyvnytskyi in central Ukraine, is giving all the coins back to his country as the war continues.