TMZ Sports - Page 15

Panthers running back D'Onta Foreman says he was way out of character when he punched Saints star Marcus Davenport during Sunday's game ... and for that, he's apologizing.

The altercation went down after the defensive end tackled Foreman in the third quarter of the Panthers vs. Saints game at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.

After the tackle, Foreman pushed Davenport ... who responded by smacking the 26-year-old's helmet.

This pissed D'Onta off to the point where he ended up throwing a right hook ... and the punch landed directly in Davenport's facemask. Both players were then ejected from the game.

Foreman -- who signed a one-year contract with Carolina in March -- apologized on Monday for his behavior ... saying his actions "were totally out of my character."

"To the organization, my teammates, and our amazing fans, I sincerely and truly apologize for my actions in yesterday's game and not being available," Foreman said.

"I am deeply regretful of everything that happened and assure you it will never happen again. I absolutely love being a Panther and wholeheartedly look forward to this journey together."

Foreman wasn't the only NFL star to put out an apology today ... Packers star Quay Walker tweeted an "I'm sorry" statement after the rookie shoved a Detroit Lions trainer on the field.

Damar Hamlin was discharged from the UC Medical Center and transferred to a Buffalo hospital on Monday ... one week after his terrifying on-field health scare.

Dr. Knight and Dr. Pritts -- the physicians who provided round-the-clock care for the Bills safety following the on-field incident -- announced the update just minutes ago ... saying they are thrilled with the improvements he's made in such a short amount of time.

The docs say 24-year-old Damar was up and walking ... and exhibiting his usual sense of humor prior to being released from the hospital. He will now go to a Buffalo facility, where he will undergo further testing.

The docs say they wanted Damar's condition to improve to "fair" or "good" before traveling ... and he met that criteria Monday morning.

As we previously reported, the Bills played in Hamlin's honor against the Patriots on Sunday ... and #3 was watching from his hospital room.

In fact, the docs say Hamlin was jumping up and down when teammate Nyheim Hines ran the opening kickoff back for a touchdown ... which set off all the alarms in the ICU.

The docs say they traveled with Hamlin to the airport on Monday ... and while the development is a step in the right direction, it's still too early to discuss his football future.

"He still has a little bit of a ways to go in terms of his ongoing recovery," Dr. Knight said. "We're thrilled to where he is today. He's up, he's walking around, he's got an amazing, genuine sense of humor and his family is amazing and we're happy he's with them but in terms of any kind of conjecture to his future, that's still significantly in the future and it's gonna be up to Damar and a great team of physicians to help him."

Hamlin sent out a tweet to his supporters following the news ... saying, "Headed home to Buffalo today with a lot of love on my heart."

"Watching the world come together around me on Sunday was truly an amazing feeling."

Jared Jeffries' made over $40 million in the NBA, but proving everyone loves something for free ... the retired NBA vet won a brand new compact car on "The Price Is Right," and his reaction was priceless!!

The former #11 overall pick and Washington Wizards forward appeared on the famous game show (it aired Monday morning) where he was a contestant in the "One Away" game -- the goal being to correctly identify the cost of a car.

You can clearly see Jeffries was anxious before the last two numbers were revealed ... but when he realized he won, he went nuts!

"What a good win!" comedian and host Drew Carey said, "What a good win to start the show! Way to go!"

JJ hilariously gallops over to his car -- which looks to be a new 2023 Toyota -- and he's ecstatic.

"Yes!' Jeffries cheered with the crowd.

Of course, Jeffries certainly has a car or two ... since the 41-year-old made a fortune during his 11 seasons in the NBA. In addition to his time in D.C., JJ also played for the Knicks, Rockets and Blazers. Jared scored over 3,000 points and grabbed over 2,500 rebounds.

Remember the TerRio look-alike who went viral for giving the side-eye at Popeyes??? That kid from the famous meme is now a college football player -- and we're all officially old.

TMZ Sports has confirmed ... Lake Erie College freshman offensive lineman Dieunerst Collin is, in fact, the little kid in the yellow shirt who became internet famous on now-defunct social media platform Vine back in the day.

As it turns out, the 6'1", 330-pounder went on to be a successful athlete since becoming a meme ... and won a state championship with East Orange Campus high school in New Jersey in 2021.

But Collin isn't shying away from his past -- in fact, he wants the fried chicken chain to hook him up with a Name, Image and Likeness deal!!

"@popeyes I JUST WANNA TALK BUISNESS," Collin said on social media this weekend.

According to Collin's bio on the team site, he's currently studying sports management and comedian studies ... and hopes to become a sports analyst.

Kliff Kingsbury is out in Arizona ... the Cardinals announced Monday they've fired their head coach after a brutal 4-13 season.

The 43-year-old had just signed an extension earlier this year ... but, after a disappointing campaign and an overall record of 28-37-1 in 66 games -- the Cards decided to move on.

The former Texas Tech head coach (2013-2018) had been hired by AZ in 2019 ... and saw his best season in 2021, when he led the Cardinals to an 11-6 record and his lone playoff appearance.

But, the team was blown out by the Rams -- and came back in 2022 and fell flat, finishing in fourth place in the NFC West standings.

Further complicating issues for Kingsbury ... he appeared to butt heads with franchise quarterback Kyler Murray multiple times this year, before the signal-caller suffered a season-ending ACL injury on Monday Night Football in Week 14.

No word yet on where the Cardinals will turn to replace Kliff -- but, reportedly, they have interest in ex-Saints head coach Sean Payton.

Aaron Rodgers very well could have played his last NFL game on Sunday ... with the Green Bay Packers quarterback kick-starting retirement rumblings based on how he presented himself after being eliminated from the playoffs.

The 4-time MVP had the football world in a frenzy following the Packers' 20-16 loss to the Detroit Lions ... when he appeared to soak in what may be his last moment in a Green Bay uniform at Lambeau Field -- putting his arm around longtime teammate and best friend Randall Cobb as they made their way to the locker room.

After the L, Rodgers' comments certainly added to the speculation ... saying he will make a decision on his future after he takes some time to process everything.

"At some point the carousel comes to a stop and it’s time to get off," Rodgers said on Sunday.

"I feel good about what I've accomplished in this league and wouldn't have any regrets walking away. But I gotta see what it feels like once I get away from this."

Rodgers also had people talking when he rejected Lions receiver Jameson Williams' jersey swap request ... when he appeared to tell him, "I’m gonna hold on to this one."

Rodgers later explained he likes to keep specific jerseys that might have a special meaning to him ... and said since it was a primetime Week 18 game at Lambeau, those threads fell under that category.

Packers star Quay Walker is apologizing for shoving a Detroit Lions trainer during "Sunday Night Football" -- calling his actions both "stupid" and "wrong."

The Green Bay defender put his hands on a Detroit official who was trying to tend to an injured player late in the game at Lambeau Field ... and the rookie linebacker's actions were so disturbing, referees actually ejected him from the game.

The 22-year-old first-round pick was panned for the move -- particularly after the Buffalo Bills had just credited one of their trainers with helping save Damar Hamlin's life earlier in the week -- and on Monday morning, Walker issued an apology for his actions on his Twitter page.

"I want to apologize publicly about what happened Sunday night," said Walker, who led the Packers in tackles this season. "I reacted off of my emotions again and take full responsibility of making another stupid decision."

"Since then I've questioned myself on why did I do what I did when the trainer was doing his job!! I was wrong!!"

Walker -- who was actually ejected earlier this season against the Bills for shoving a Buffalo assistant in a similar fashion -- also explained his actions that followed the ejection ... saying he was kicking himself in the stadium tunnel after he had "messed up again."

"[I] was wrong for what I did and couldn't believe I did it again," Walker said. "To the Detroit lions and to the entire training staff including the person I did that too. I'm sorry."

Walker says he will accept whatever punishment will come his way.

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur, meanwhile, called the incident "unacceptable" ... and said he holds his players to a "much higher standard."

Olivia Dunne -- an LSU gymnastics star and one of the most followed college athletes on social media -- is calling for respect from her supporters ... after a group of them were seen in a disturbing video parked outside one of her meets wildly screaming for her.

The gaggle of college-aged boys posted up at an exit of the Jon M. Huntsman Center in Salt Lake City on Friday just after the Tigers and Utah Utes battled on the floor ... and the sea of males could be seen in the footage not just chanting her name, but asking repeatedly where she was.

At one point, after the camera panned down the line of yelling people, one of the men in the video said, "Please. Do you know where Livvy is? I'm serious."

According to the mother of Utes gymnast Jillian Hoffman, the scene away from the camera grew even more unnerving ... as Jennifer Hoffman said in a Facebook post several of the fans in the area were "so rude and disrespectful" to her daughter and teammates.

"They literally said to their faces," Jennifer wrote, "you are not Livvy but you will do, can we get a picture."

The reporter who shot the clip called the site "scary and disturbing and cringey." Another reporter on the scene said LSU actually had to move its team bus to avoid the crowd.

Livvy eventually sent a tweet on Sunday night asking her fans to be more "respectful" going forward.

"I will always appreciate and love the support from you guys," said Dunne, who has 6.7 million followers on TikTok, "but if you come to a meet, I want to ask you to please be respectful of the other gymnasts and the gymnastics community as we are just doing our job."

Dunne had interacted with some of the fans at the meet -- after they were seen inside of the stadium holding signs and chanting her name. She took selfies with them, and appeared to thank them for coming.

She faced criticism, though, for acknowledging the mob at the arena -- backlash that Dunne's mother said in a tweet on Sunday was completely inappropriate.

"It is not ok to blame any athlete/celebrity when fan behavior crosses the line," Katherine Dunne said. "In a sport where all the girls wear nothing but leotards stop suggesting that how Livvy dresses means she deserves this in any way. Stop shaming girls for the behavior of boys."

Livvy's popularity has exploded in the past year -- piling up millions of followers on all of her social media platforms, while securing NIL deals reportedly worth north of $2 million.

Rising undefeated MMA star Victoria "The Prodigy" Lee -- who competed in ONE Championship in Asia -- passed away last month, her family announced. She was only 18.

Lee's older sister, MMA fighter Angela, broke the sad news via Instagram on Saturday ... saying Victoria died on Dec. 26.

"She has gone too soon and our family has been completely devastated since then," Angela said in the caption.

"We miss her. More than anything in this world. Our family will never be the same. Life will never be the same."

Angela added her baby sister was the best person she knew ... and she was beautiful inside and out.

"We love you Victoria. I love you Sprout. Until the end of time."

Lee was an up-and-coming mixed martial artist ... but recently put her career on hold to focus on graduating from high school.

ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong said she was an "extraordinary martial arts prodigy" and "watched her blossom over the years as a martial artist and a human being."

"I will always remember Victoria for the beautiful and precious soul that she was. May you rest in peace, Victoria. We will all miss you."

Victoria was also a Junior World Champion ... and IMMAF Junior State and World Champion.

Besides Angela, Victoria's brothers -- Christian and Adrian -- are also MMA fighters.

Lee had an undefeated record of 3-0 and dedicated her last win to her parents.

"I am so lucky to have such incredible parents," Lee said in an IG post. "This victory goes 100% to you mom and dad."

Cleveland legend Bernie Kosar was booted from his radio gig with the Browns on Sunday ... and it's all because the ex-quarterback bet on his former team to beat the Steelers.

Kosar -- who played for the Orange and Brown from 1985-93 -- placed the $19,000 wager (in honor of his jersey number) with the Tipico Sportsbook app last weekend ... becoming one of the first legal bets placed in Ohio.

The former Pro Bowler claimed if Cleveland (+120 in most sportsbooks) ended up beating Pittsburgh, he would donate the winnings to charity.

The Browns ended up losing, 28-14, but not only did Kosar lose his $19k ... he also lost his pregame radio show job with the team -- due to breaking one of the league's most unforgivable rules.

"Earlier this week we notified Bernie, that per league policy, we were required to remove him from our pregame radio coverage for the season finale after he violated the NFL gambling policy by placing a bet on an NFL game," the Browns said on Sunday.

"We understand what Bernie means to this community and our history but as team contracted personnel hired to provide content on our media platforms, his bet was a violation of NFL rules and we must adhere to all NFL policy."

Kosar addressed the move on Twitter ... saying, "I am shocked & disappointed. Brown & Orange is my life … Go #Browns."

Chicago White Sox star Liam Hendriks -- arguably the best closer in the MLB -- has been diagnosed with cancer ... and is slated to begin treatment for the disease ASAP.

The right-handed pitcher revealed the news on his social media page Sunday -- saying docs recently discovered he had non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. He went on to say he'll begin medical care to try to eradicate it all on Monday.

The 33-year-old, though, vowed to beat it ... saying he's going to use "the same determination I have used when facing other obstacles in my life."

"I am confident that I will make a full recovery and be back on the mound as soon as possible," Hendriks said.

"I know with the support of my wife, my family, my teammates and the Chicago White Sox organization, along with the treatment and care from my doctors, I will get through this."

Several MLB stars commented on three-time All-Star's post ... including future Hall of Famer Miguel Cabrera, who left praying hands emojis.

Hendriks has been in the major leagues since 2011, but has blossomed into one of the game's best just recently. He had a breakout year with the Oakland A's in 2019 -- and has gone on to become one of the most reliable ninth-inning guys in baseball since.

The White Sox -- who signed Hendriks to a 3-year, $54 million contract in 2021 -- said Sunday night they plan to help the pitcher on his journey to recovery ... adding they're "optimistic he will pitch again for the White Sox as soon as viable."

No, Clipper Darrell ain't on his way to becoming Celtic Darrell after being punched at a game earlier this month ... the L.A. superfan tells TMZ Sports he's still in love with the Clippers -- even if he's still ailing from the knockout blow.

We broke the story ... the iconic NBA fan -- real name Darrell Bailey -- was left unconscious after a Crypto.com Arena security guard socked him in the face following a dispute at the Clippers' game against Boston back on Dec. 12.

Darrell told us at the time he was left in a load of pain -- and he actually had to be taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

Many wondered if the situation would sour his feelings on Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and the rest of the guys on the hardwood -- but the 55-year-old told us this week he ain't going anywhere ... even if the experience he had with the arena staffer was traumatic.

"I look forward to returning to Crypto.com Arena to root for my 2023 NBA Championship Clippers!" he said. "Let's Go Clippers Let's Go!!!"

Darrell did add he's still hurting from the punch -- saying he's continuing to receive medical care for his ailments. But, he did appear to be in better spirits.

"What happened that night came as a complete shock, and it left me heartbroken," he said. "I'm still dealing with the emotional and physical aftermath of being assaulted and knocked unconscious by the AEG security guard. I'd like to thank the fans, athletes, the Clippers organization, and AEG for their love and support and for reaching out to me to check on my health and well-being."

"I'd ask that my privacy be respected while I continue treatment for my injuries."

The Buffalo Bills were ready to play football again this weekend, but they were also ready to honor their teammate, Damar Hamlin ... and they did both in equal measure.

The squad took the field Sunday against the Patriots, with a ton of players -- including QB Josh Allen -- carrying custom flags that asked people to "Pray for Damar," which also bared his official number, 3. The Bills are at home, so their crowd was completely fired up.

There were several fan-made posters with their own messages for Damar ... bottom line, everyone had the safety on their mind. And everyone paid tribute in their own unique way.

This wasn't the only nod to Damar ... before kickoff, the team acknowledged and thanked the medical staff that worked on DH almost a week ago, who undoubtedly saved his life.

On the football field, itself ... even more magic from Buffalo. Nyheim Hines caught the opening kickoff and sent back a 90-plus-yard return -- running practically all the way down the field, breaking tackles along the way, and scored a touchdown in a miraculous play.

It was a helluva way to start the game ... and you could see and hear the excitement both among his teammates and even in the booth -- where the broadcasters described it as "storybook" type stuff. Damar himself seemed to love it ... tweeting, "OMFG!!!!!!"

Speaking of Damar ... his condition continues to improve, and he was showing his guy support from his hospital bed -- posting a photo of himself with a "Love for Damar" tee, and telling the Bills it was "GAMETIME."

Eric Wood believed the Bills were destined to win the Super Bowl before the season started, but with the endless tragedies the teams endured, including Damar Hamlin's medical emergency, the former Pro Bowler thinks this is the year the Lombardi trophy finally arrives in Orchard Park.

TMZ Sports talked to Wood, who played all 9 seasons in Buffalo (2009-2017), and now serves as the color analyst on the radio (the ex-star was calling the game when #3 went down), and we asked if he believes the team's fate is to win their first ever SB.

"I do and I felt that way before the season," Wood said, adding, "The Bills started this season as the unanimous betting favorite to win the Super Bowl and these injuries have derailed some things. It's games being moved and a lot of adversity that these Bills had to deal with but in my mind, it does feel like destiny."

In May, 10 people were shot and killed in a Buffalo supermarket -- targets of a racially motivated hate crime. Team owner Kim Pegula battled health issues earlier this season. The western New York area has also been hit with multiple snowstorms, including a historic blizzard that killed at least 44 people. Dawson Knox's brother died unexpectedly. Then there's Damar. The area has been through so much.

The Bills have never won a Super Bowl. They made 4 straight between 1990 and 1993, but lost all the games.

FWIW, they won 2 AFL Championships in 1964 and 1965.

Eric believes after all the pain and suffering, this is the year the drought finally comes to an end.

Of course, the Bills are 12-3 and considered one of the best 2 or 3 teams in the league.

As for the mindset as the team steps on the gridiron again for the first time since "Monday Night Football," Wood says the message is straightforward.

News of Aaron Rodgers and Mallory Edens' new romance was just confirmed this week, but the clues were there as early as last month ... with the two sharing candy as they watched the Milwaukee Bucks from their courtside seats.

As we reported on Friday -- the Green Bay Packers quarterback and Bucks owner's daughter are, in fact, dating ... with the news coming off as a surprise to many.

But upon further review of Rodgers and Edens' recent public outing ... folks shouldn't be so shocked.

In the short clip from the Dec. 2 matchup against the Lakers, Aaron grabs a handful of what appears to be Mike and Ikes and downs 'em before passing it to Edens, who takes the box from him.

We get it -- it's not much, but it's certainly something a couple would do ... and just goes to show that they were enjoying their time together.

As we previously reported, the rumors had been swirling all week ... with many pointing out Edens recently hit up a Green Bay Packers game decked out in the home team's gear. Turns out all the rumors were right!!

Aaron Donald ain't just a monster on the field ... he's a hero off of it too -- 'cause Make-A-Wish recipient Kyle Frazier tells TMZ Sports the Rams star helped him beat cancer, and then gave him some great football advice as well!!

The 21-year-old college football player -- who beat Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2019 -- initially met Donald over Zoom in 2020 as part of his Make-A-Wish request.

At the time, due to the pandemic, the duo could only talk remotely ... although Frazier said it helped him recover from the disease, and ultimately assisted him on his way to playing as an offensive lineman at Savannah State University.

This past weekend, Frazier was actually able to meet with Donald in person and fulfill the rest of his Make-A-Wish request ... and he told us following the experience out at LAX this week that it was a life-changing moment for him.

"To be able to meet somebody I really look up to, I aspire to be," he said, "it was just amazing. I don't think words can explain it."

In addition to meeting with Donald, Frazier also got to work out with the guy -- and he says while there, the three-time Defensive Player of the Year gave him some wisdom that he said he'll never forget.

"If it was easy, everybody would do it," the sophomore said of what Donald told him. "So, you know, keep working. Don't stop. It's hard being great."

Frazier also got to sign a one-day contract with the Rams and take in their game against the Chargers as part of his Make-A-Wish dream ... and now, he tells us he's feeling more inspired than ever.

"It's definitely set another goal for me," he said.