TMZ Sports - Page 50

Shaquille Leonard didn't let his release from the Colts impact his charity work in Indianapolis on Tuesday ... as the star linebacker still found a way to pass out turkeys to those in need despite the rough afternoon.

Just hours after his tenure in Indy came to an abrupt end ... Leonard made time to partner up with Gleaners Food Bank and Chapel Rock Church to help families with their upcoming Thanksgiving meals.

Leonard was seen handing out turkeys as well as side dishes ... and TMZ Sports is told he impacted roughly 200 families with his charitable work.

Of course, no one would have blamed Leonard one bit if he had backed out of the event ... as he openly admitted he was "shocked" when the Colts fired him earlier in the day.

Despite battling a myriad of injuries during his six years in Indianapolis, Leonard had established himself as one of the best Colts players of the past decade -- earning three All-Pro selections. Yet still, he was cut unceremoniously while prepping for a midseason game.

Leonard, however, was still somehow in great spirits at the event ... taking photos with fans and signing autographs.

He told ESPN's Stephen Holder on the scene that he believed complaining about his diminished role in Indianapolis' defense this season played a part in his cut -- although he did add "there's no hard feelings" between him and the org. at this point.

Kanye West believes his ex-trainer, Harley Pasternak, is stalking him around Dubai -- they did run into each other there -- but TMZ has learned it's Harley who felt threatened enough to call for backup.

Harley and Ye were both at Atlantis the Royal Dubai resort on Monday evening, and according to Ye's camp ... the rapper felt uncomfortable and believed Harley was tailing him around Dubai. So much so, he whipped out his phone and started recording Harley as he spoke to hotel staff.

However, sources with direct knowledge at the resort tell TMZ ... Harley was at the concierge desk making a dinner reservation when he came face-to-face with Ye. Remember, these 2 have a tumultuous history.

Harley's the one who called police and paramedics back in 2016 when he said Ye started behaving erratically during a training session. That call led to Kanye being committed to UCLA Medical Center for mental evaluation.

Cut to Monday in Dubai, around 9 PM we're told, when our sources say Ye approached Harley and attempted to embrace him -- perhaps trying to hug it out -- but Harley rebuffed him. We're told the concierge asked Harley if he needed hotel security, and he said yes.

We're told security arrived, but Ye and his team had left the area by that point -- and there was no further contact between them.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is weighing in on Taylor Swift's relationship with Travis Kelce ... saying their new romance has been "great for the league."

Commish shared his two cents on the Tayvis craze during an interview with "CBS Mornings" on Wednesday ... and he's shipping the two lovebirds pretty hard after seeing the effect its had on his organization.

"They're happy, they seem to be enjoying their relationship," Goodell said. "That's great in and of itself."

"It has connected more fans of Taylor's and more fans of the NFL. And, in some ways, to see that they have a connection, now they have a connection to our game and to Taylor," he added. "She's an unbelievable artist. Obviously, Travis is an unbelievable player."

"I think it's great for the league to have that kind of attention, so we welcome it."

Of course, Taylor's appearances at Travis' Kansas City Chiefs games have been widely documented ... with broadcasting crews showing her cheering on her man from her suite seats.

The two have become quite the power couple over the past few months ... with Travis flying to Argentina to hit up her 'Eras' show during his bye week.

Our sources tell us Tayvis will be together for the holidays ... which is a huge step in their relationship.

Floyd Mayweather is putting his strip club expertise to good use ... taking matters into his own hands in search of the best dancers in the business!!

TBE had a helluva Wednesday night ... sitting courtside at the Lakers vs. Jazz game at Crypto.com Arena before getting into some more adult activities at a local gentlemen's club.

Floyd posted videos of his strip club visit ... showing off massive stacks of cash as he made it rain for multiple ladies shaking it for his crew.

But, it wasn't all for his leisure -- Mayweather explained it was a scouting trip of sorts ... saying, "having fun and recruiting."

Of course, Floyd has his own Girl Collection venue in Las Vegas ... so the dancers might've left the night with more than just wads of cash -- they could have a new employer, too!!

Floyd is no stranger to being the generous type at strip clubs -- he famously loves to let the bills fly whenever he rolls through ... and has documented his charitable contributions over the years.

A wild fight broke out just before Lionel Messi's game on Tuesday night ... and the brawl became so large and so bloody -- the soccer star's match was actually delayed so police could get everything under control.

The skirmish inside of Maracanã stadium in Rio de Janeiro initially started as the national anthems for Brazil and Argentina were playing just before their World Cup qualifier match kicked off.

Video from the scene shows fans from both teams who were seated near each other inside of the venue began whaling on each other ... and, quickly, it turned into a massive fracas.

Grown men were seen covered in blood ... while children sitting nearby were in tears. At one point during the action, authorities had to use batons on spectators to try to control the outburst.

Messi and other players on the pitch, meanwhile, eventually made their way over to the area of the combatants -- and pleaded with everyone to calm down.

Ultimately, the soccer icon led his team off the field and back into the locker room ... before returning roughly half an hour later to play after the fighting had tailed off.

Messi's Argentinian squad ended up besting Brazil, 1-0 ... but the 36-year-old had to leave the contest early due to a groin injury.

Afterward, he told reporters he was grateful the situation in the stands didn't escalate even further than it did.

"There could have been a disaster," Messi said.

Taylor Swift grooved her way onto the "Dancing with the Stars" stage ... surprising contestants and the audience with a special video message for the night's theme ... "A Celebration of Taylor Swift.”

"Hey guys, it’s Taylor. I just want to say thank you so much for having this me-themed night on 'Dancing With the Stars,'” the pop star said Tuesday ... explaining she couldn't be there due to tour commitments in Brazil.

Let's not forget ... Travis Kelce has also kept her preoccupied during their whirlwind, headline-grabbing romance ... but there was no mention of him as she encouragingly told the remaining stars they were in good hands with her choreographer Mandy Moore -- not the "This Is Us" star, FYI -- with their routines.

Taylor's best chart-topping tunes such as "Lover", "Shake It Off", "Look What You Made Me Do", "Cruel Summer", "August" and "Lavender Haze" were given the dancefloor treatment ... but even the star's good vibes couldn't save Harry Jowsey and Rylee Arnold from elimination.

The evening was anticipated since October when pro Peta Murgatroyd let slip of the Taylor-themed evening ... with cohost Alfonso Ribeiro finally confirming the news on November 7.

The star herself has appeared on the show three times to perform ... first "Jump Then Fall" and "Love Story" in 2009, then "Mine" and "White Horse" in 2010 and finally "We Are Never Getting Back Together" in 2012.

The newfound happy times between Kim Zolciak and Kroy Biermann were very short-lived, in fact, just a few days after celebrating their 12th anniversary, they were at each other's throats ... TMZ has learned.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ it's been about a week now since Kim and Kroy started having issues in their marriage once again. We're told the fights were intense, per usual, and revolved around their atrocious financial situation, and its impact on their relationship.

Translation: back to the common theme that prompted Kroy to file divorce docs, in the first, and second place.

We're told Kim and Kroy remained under the same roof while they verbally sparred, and things continued to bubble between them.

We're told throughout the latest period of fighting, Kroy remained in the primary bedroom and Kim was in the basement/nanny suite -- as ordered by a judge -- but that distance wasn't enough to keep the peace.

Everything came to a head Monday night when one of the estranged couple's young kids called the cops during an "extremely loud" fight between the two. Law enforcement sources tell us 3 officers and a supervisor came to the home to settle things down, but no one was arrested.

Interestingly enough, Kim and Kroy were seen out with their kids for haircuts and some Starbucks just hours before the police visit, and everything seemed calm.

The drama is 180 degrees from what the couple portrayed on social media when they celebrated their wedding anniversary on November 11 with a fancy meal and drinks ... seemingly oblivious to the massive money woes they continue to face.

Speaking of their financial troubles ... Kim and Kroy's Georgia mansion, which was supposed to go up in a foreclosure auction, is still on the market for $6 million.

One of the greatest right arms in the history of sports no longer works.

Drew Brees made the shocking revelation this week ... admitting he can't throw overhand anymore.

"Look," the future Hall of Famer said on Tuesday on ESPN Radio. "I'll let you in on a little fact. I don't throw with my right arm anymore. My right arm does not work. So, when I throw in the backyard right now, I throw left-handed."

Brees said on the show it all stems from the devastating shoulder injury he suffered while playing for the San Diego Chargers during the 2005 season.

You'll recall, following a fumble, Brees fell awkwardly on his throwing arm ... dislocating his shoulder and tearing up several important pieces of his body in the process.

Docs were able to fix him ... and he went on to have one of the best NFL careers ever with the New Orleans Saints -- but he said he's reeling from it all now.

The former quarterback said he's suffering from a "degenerative shoulder" ... as well as "all kinds of arthritic changes."

Brees then revealed if he could somehow get it to work -- he "would absolutely still be playing."

The 44-year-old added that, thankfully, he is able to be somewhat athletic with his right arm still ... saying at least pickleball isn't out of the equation at this point.

"I can play pickleball because it's below the waist," he said.

The Holy Grail of Elvis Presley jewelry is going up for grabs -- it's his iconic lion claw necklace, and some Elvis-crazed collector might have to drop half a million dollars, or more, to nab it at auction.

Elvis famously wore the lion claw around his neck for years, both on and off stage ... including during some of his most memorable moments.

When Elvis met Muhammad Ali at the peak of the boxer's prime, the lion necklace was dangling from the singer's neck.

Ditto for a famous photo of Elvis celebrating his daughter Lisa Marie's 5th birthday with his wife Priscilla.

Elvis took the stage at least 30 times with the lion claw necklace too, on tour and during his Las Vegas residency ... and he wore it during his post-Priscilla relationship with Linda Thompson.

The piece is bedazzled with diamonds and rubies ... and it's been on display for years at the Elvis Presley Museum, but now it's going up for auction with Gotta Have Rock and Roll.

No, Travis Kelce's play of late has not been impacted by his relationship with Taylor Swift ... at least, that's according to ex-NFLer Channing Crowder, who tells TMZ Sports the Chiefs star is too used to the limelight to be impacted by dating the pop star.

Of course, there are plenty who are ready to disagree ... as Kelce has had three straight pedestrian games in a row -- all while his romance with Swift has reached a fever pitch.

But, when we spoke to Crowder on Tuesday following Kelce's four-catch, 44-yard performance in a loss to the Eagles on Monday Night Football ... the former Miami Dolphins linebacker said there's just simply no way Swift's swayed things for the 34-year-old.

As for why ... Crowder tells us he thinks Kelce's just simply too familiar with fame to have it bother his game on the gridiron.

"He doesn't hide from attention," Crowder said.

Kelce has been with Swift for quite some time now ... and when she's been in attendance at his games, he's balled out. But, when she hasn't been around -- particularly this last month -- it's been a different story.

Crowder, though, says it's all pretty explainable ... saying defenses have been focusing more on Kelce due to the lack of other weapons on Kansas City's offense.

As for Kelce's admission this week that retirement has been on his mind a little bit -- Crowder did seem to think that was a fairly significant revelation ... telling us, "Once guys start talking about retirement, they might as well retire."

A Victor Wembanyama fan is clearly believing the hype surrounding the NBA's newest phenom ... purchasing the Spurs rookie's debut jersey this week for nearly a MILLION dollars!!

The threads Wemby wore during his first-ever game with San Antonio hit the Sotheby's auction block last week ... and experts had projected it to sell for right around $100K.

But, with the lore of Wembanyama growing every time he touches the floor ... one unidentified bidder ended up locking it all down on Tuesday for a whopping $762,000!!!

Of course, while the price tag is certainly a steep one ... it could be a helluva an investment -- because Wembanyama is proving night in and night out that he's simply different.

Through 14 games so far, he's averaging 18.6 points per game as well as 9.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists, one steal and 2.6 blocks.

Not everyone is a fan of Barry Sanders' new documentary -- his former quarterback, Scott Mitchell, just shared his negative review in a lengthy rant on social media ... revealing he's super pissed at how he was depicted in the project.

Sanders' "Bye, Bye, Barry" just hit Prime Video this week ... and Mitchell's big takeaway was that many guests featured in the doc blamed him for the running back never winning a Super Bowl.

Mitchell went to Facebook to vent about it all ... initially praising Sanders' abilities on the field, before ripping into his critics -- name-dropping Detroit superfans Eminem and Jeff Daniels in the process.

"However, I am so tired of hearing how I was the reason that Barry Sanders never won a Super Bowl," Mitchell said, according to the Detroit News. "I'm so tired of hearing how I was not a good QB. My only response is F*** YOU ALL!!!!! That includes Eminem (and) Jeff Daniels."

Mitchell -- who played for the Lions from 1994-98 -- added he was disappointed to hear his former coach, Wayne Fontes, openly talk about wishing he had Joe Montana or Warren Moon under center instead ... and how a proper QB was what kept Barry from being a champion.

"A little support from the coach might have gone a long way," Mitchell added. "Wayne never had my back!"

Mitchell then turned his focus to Sanders ... saying he, too, deserved blame for their empty trophy cases.

"Bottom line, Barry Sanders had everything in Detroit," Mitchell continued. "Everyone loved him. Everything was built for Barry to succeed. In his 10 year career, he won one playoff game and the only reason he didn't win more was everyone else was the problem?"

"How many yards did Barry have in the playoffs in '94, '95, '97? I'll give you a hint not very many. We all are to blame for not winning a (Super Bowl) in Detroit even Barry Sanders."

Mitchell ended his rant by saying he truly feels the Lions could have gone the distance if the team had just been a bit more patient ... but that's not how it played out.

Deion Sanders just made a shocking -- and hilarious -- admission ... revealing Tuesday he had absolutely no clue where Mount Rushmore was located.

Prime acknowledged his geography deficiency as he was reflecting on his Colorado team's performance this year with a gaggle of media members.

While trying to explain how he felt about his 4-7 Buffaloes squad ... he said he has sky-high expectations -- similar to the height of a famous mountain that he thought was situated in SoCal.

"What's those little four heads that's in California?" he asked reporters. "What they call those? The people's faces engraved?"

When the room filled Sanders in that it was Mt. Rushmore -- and that it was, in fact, located in South Dakota, Coach Prime couldn't help but laugh.

"It's in where?" he said. "I thought it was in L.A. all this time! Wow, my geography."

To his credit, after chuckling for a few moments, Sanders thanked the crowd for "educating me."

Aaron Rodgers feels badly about how things played out for benched backup Zach Wilson ... admitting he's "disappointed and sad" the young quarterback didn't get to sit back and learn from him this season.

The former No. 2 overall pick recently lost his starting gig to Tim Boyle after struggling to find a rhythm as Rodgers recovers from his Achilles injury ... and during the four-time MVP's appearance on the "Pat McAfee Show," he said he has guilt about the situation.

"I feel for Zach, I love Zach." Rodgers said. "Zach's such a great kid and I do think he still has a bright future in the league."

Rodgers believes it's more fair to throw blame on the whole team than just on Zach ... but ultimately, it was time to find a spark on offense.

"This is disappointing, I have some personal guilt around the whole thing," he added. "I mean, I'm pissed I wasn't able to play and frustrated that if I was out there, and I feel like I'd be playing well, there would be obviously different narratives around our team and Zach would have the opportunity to learn and grow and see what it looks like without the pressure on and being able to sit in those meetings and go through the season and just kind of watch me and my process."

Rodgers said the team will continue to support both Zach and Tim moving forward ... but reiterated it's not all Wilson's fault the team is sitting at 4-6.

Kim Zolciak and Kroy Biermann painted the picture of a happy family during a low-key outing with their kids Monday ... a scene that drastically changed 2 hours later when cops were called to settle an explosive fight.

Both were seen together leaving a barbershop in Alpharetta, Georgia, with some of their kids in tow before making a stop at a nearby Starbucks.

On the surface, all seemed well -- but on closer inspection, Kim and Kroy were without their wedding rings again. As we first reported, not long after the errands all peace was shattered when one of their kids called the cops over their "extremely loud" argument.

Law enforcement sources told us 3 officers and a supervisor arrived at the estranged pair's mansion to try to settle the verbal domestic dispute ... eventually calming things down.

Officers are practically seasoned guests at the duo's home ... first arriving to the property in August when Kim accused Kroy of locking her out of their bedroom ... and a month later telling them she didn't feel safe in her own home.

October brought another revelation by TMZ ... with us breaking the story of a court mandate ordering them to keep their distance at home -- Kim gets the basement and nanny suite and Kroy gets the primary bedroom.

Marquez Valdes-Scantling is breaking his silence after dropping the potential game-winning touchdown pass on Monday night ... promising on Tuesday to "be better" -- while accepting criticism.

The Chiefs wide receiver took to his X page to deliver his first public thoughts since the game-altering play against the Eagles at Arrowhead Stadium ... and he made it clear, he's ready to deal with all of the fallout from not catching Patrick Mahomes' deep ball late in the fourth quarter of the key contest.

"I'm grateful, I'll be better," he wrote. "And I appreciate the criticism and the support."

"God put this on me because he knew I could handle it," he added. "Gratitude for everything that comes with it."

Of course, MVS was obviously having a hard time dealing with the misplay just minutes after it happened ... as cameras caught him slamming his helmet against a stadium wall.

The play would have given Kansas City a 24-21 lead -- and would've most likely led to the Chiefs earning the win and an 8-2 record. But, after the drop, they lost 21-17, and are now in danger of missing out on the No. 1 seed in the AFC.