TMZ Sports - Page 45

Warren Moon says Aaron Rodgers deserves a lot of credit for shutting down his comeback efforts this week ... explaining to TMZ Sports things could have turned dire for the QB if he had continued his push to get back on the field.

The Hall of Fame quarterback -- who knows a thing or two about playing into his 40s -- said on Wednesday he's glad Rodgers has decided to stop his pursuit of rejoining the Jets this season because he had a real fear the 4-time MVP could reinjure himself.

"Those Achilles injuries," Moon said, "even though the Achilles might be connected again, it still has to become much stronger."

Rodgers revealed on "The Pat McAfee" Show on Tuesday he would not get back under center for NY in 2023 despite busting his ass since he suffered the injury on Sept. 11 -- because he's just simply not 100 percent.

He told McAfee his leg is close -- but he needed another 3-to-4 weeks to really feel good about things. And, with the Jets officially eliminated from playoff contention on Sunday, it just seemed to make sense for the 40-year-old signal-caller to put his focus on getting ready for 2024.

Moon obviously thinks that's a great plan ... telling us that even if NY had been in the postseason hunt, he still would have rather sat Rodgers.

"I still don't think he should come back if he's not 100 percent," he said.

His advice to Aaron going forward was just to stay in shape -- while making sure his team makes it a priority to surround him with a good offensive line next season.

Bam Margera proposed to his girlfriend Dannii Marie  ... and she accepted!!!

The former "Jackass" star and pro skateboarder tells TMZ ... he popped the question Oct. 27 in New Hope, PA at the home of pro skater Ed Duffy.

Bam and Dannii dated for about 6 months before he dropped to one knee and proposed ... and Bam tells us he kept the engagement mostly under wraps, only telling a few people.

It's unclear when Bam and Dannii will be walking down the aisle ... but the engagement is another sign things are looking up for Bam.

As we first reported ... Bam is now 100 days sober and counting, he's working out and skateboarding again and just got granted monitored visits to see his son Phoenix.

Us Weekly was first to report Bam's engagement, and he told the outlet Dannii is the main reason why he's sober and turning his life around.

Myles Turner pulled out all the stops for the Pacers' Star Wars night on Wednesday ... showing up to the arena decked out in a Han Solo costume -- and enlisting a stunning Princess Leia to join him!!

Of course, the Pacers center is a big-time nerd (we say that with love) ... so it's no surprise he was planning to go full send when the team announced the Dec. 20 matchup against the Charlotte Hornets would be all about the wildly successful movie franchise.

Myles is pretty open about his fandom for all things fantasy ... and takes advantage of any opportunity to put it on display for his followers -- like when he and his lady threw on some Hogwarts garb for their Harry Potter-themed Halloween costumes this year.

In fact, the team even showed Myles dressed up with a robe and lightsaber on him as part of Wednesday's promotion -- a limited edition Star Wars shirt, hot dog, chips and a Pepsi product included with a $25 ticket!!

There will be a ton of other Star Wars-themed events throughout the game ... including activities in the concourse and in-game entertainment.

As for his Leia, Myles has kept her identity pretty private ... so no info on the girlfriend outside of what he's shared on social media.

Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels is giving back to the community for Christmas ... partnering with Raising Cane's to deliver hundreds of bicycles to a Boys and Girls club.

The Louisiana State University quarterback, who recently won college football's most famous award, donated 100 bikes Monday to the Boys and Girls Club and Big Buddy organizations in Baton Rouge.

Jayden and Raising Cane's founder Todd Graves also donated $20,000 to the Greg Brooks Jr. Victory Fund ... a fundraiser for Jayden's LSU teammate who is battling a rare form of brain cancer.

"This is something that I always wanted to do is to just give back,” Jayden said on Monday. "Me growing up, I always wanted to be seen as a role model."

Meanwhile, in Arizona, actor Rob Schneider helped deliver 100 bikes to the Boys and Girls Club of the Valley in Phoenix ... also courtesy of Raising Cane's.

Logan Paul went down to South Park and got his ass roasted ... 'cause the satirical show just went after the WWE Superstar and his Prime drink company in its newest special.

"South Park: Not Suitable for Children" just dropped on Paramount+ on Wednesday ... and one of its many targets just so happened to be the YouTuber-turned-entrepreneur.

In a clip of the show, character Clyde Donovan sits in front of a computer as he watches an influencer named Logan LeDouche (who looks very similar to Paul) hawk his drink brand, "Cred" (which shares the same appearance to Prime Hydration bottles).

"The most important thing is just to be yourself," LeDouche says in the scene. "When I feel like I can't be myself, that's when I need a hydration drink that'll pick me up -- that's when I need Cred!!"

The spoof even mocks Logan's over-the-top marketing campaign for the company ... which included jumping out of a plane as he drank a bottle of Prime.

"Drink Cred, or you're a piece of s***!!"

The scene also pokes fun at the company's controversial energy drink ... which was scrutinized by Senator Chuck Schumer, who said it could be harmful to Logan's primarily young fanbase -- even though its cans specifically state it's for people ages 18 and up.

"Drink Cred at your school today!! Not intended for children," the narrator in the clip says.

Logan seems to be okay with it all ... 'cause he recently shared the clip on his social media accounts

Big moment for Hulk Hogan ... he just announced he's been baptized!!

The Hulkster had the special ceremony at the Indian Rocks Baptist Church in Florida recently ... getting in a large body of water and fully submerging himself as part of the christening process.

70-year-old Hogan spoke about the significance of the baptism ... saying, "Total surrender and dedication to Jesus is the greatest day of my life."

"No worries, no hate, no judgment ... only love!"

Hogan was accompanied by his wife, Sky Daily Hogan ... who also took part in the baptism.

Hulk has previously opened up on his faith ... saying he knew at a young age Jesus Christ was his savior who helped him take the correct path to success.

"I accepted Christ as my savior at 14yrs old," he said back in April, "and the training, prayers and vitamins kept me in the game but now that I am one with God, the main event theme of surrender, service and love makes me the Real Main Event that can slam any giant of any size through the power of my Lord and Savior and so it is, even now brother, AMEN!"

Justin Bieber channeled his inner Allen Iverson on the court Tuesday night ... showing off his solid dribbling abilities in a basketball game in L.A. -- and TMZ Sports has the video.

The "Ghost" crooner showed up to the BIG3 street popup event at SRGN studios ... once again suiting up for The League's Nahmias squad.

Of course, J.B. has been balling out in famous shoe customizer The Surgeon's hoops organization over the past few months ... so it was no surprise when he held his own in the most recent matchup.

Check out the footage ... Bieber starts off strong by dribbling the ball between his legs as he zooms past his defender for an easy bucket.

He also took a shot at the BIG3's signature deep 4-pointer ... but that didn't go necessarily as planned.

It's clear Bieber takes the contest seriously ... hustling his ass off throughout his playing time.

As we previously reported, the dude knows his way around the hardwood ... whether it's draining jumpers or passing dimes to his teammates.

12/20 9:08 AM -- Jets head coach Robert Saleh just confirmed Aaron Rodgers will, indeed, not play this season ... though the team is still activating him off injured reserve so he can continue his recovery on the field with his teammates.

"It's all part of his rehab," Saleh told reporters Wednesday morning. "Just having him on the field is a plus for everybody, for him and his teammates."

Aaron Rodgers will not make a miraculous comeback to the Jets this season after all ... the quarterback just revealed he's still about a month away from being fully healthy.

The NY quarterback broke the news just minutes ago on "The Pat McAfee Show" ... saying his body is just not quite ready for him to get back under center for the Jets in 2023.

He told Pat he's close -- but his leg still needs about 3-to-4 weeks to possibly get to "100 percent."

"If I was 100 percent today," the 40-year-old said on the show, "I'd be pushing to play."

Rodgers initially blew out his Achilles on Sept. 11 -- and he worked like a mad man to try to make his return to the Jets this weekend.

He had said the decision would be contingent upon two things -- if he was healthy enough, and if the Jets were in playoff contention.

However, neither situation came to fruition -- and Rodgers seemed to make it clear to McAfee he's now turning his sights toward getting ready for 2024.

"Now without a timetable to come back obviously we can be as smart as we can be," Rodgers said.

What's interesting -- the QB was asked during his appearance on the show if next season would be his last ... and he said frankly, "I don't think so."

He explained that moving on from Green Bay to New York gave him "a renewed passion for the game."

The 5-9 Jets will now officially have to finish off their season without their superstar against Washington, Cleveland and then New England.

Who needs Santa Claus when you're Ryan Garcia?!

The 25-year-old boxing star just treated himself to two early Christmas gifts weeks after his knockout win ... a brand-new Cadillac truck and an Audi R8!

The super lightweight flexed his new rides Tuesday on Instagram ... a matte black Caddy that he copped from Audi Fletcher Jones in Costa Mesa, CA, about an hour outside Los Angeles.

"Fully armored Cadillac," Garcia said. "Grenade resistant."

Ryan also took home a dark grey Audi R8 two-seater sports car, something Garcia has badly wanted for a long time.

The 24-1 boxer has every right to spoil himself this holiday season, and it's well deserved ... RG bounced back after his first loss ever which came at the hands of Gervonta 'Tank' Davis in April, one of the biggest fights of this year. Ryan returned and knocked out Oscar Duarte Jurado in the 8th round earlier this month at the Toyota Center in Houston.

"A lot of hard work and commitment has been put in and it’s paying off," Garcia said on IG. "To be clear not just in a materialistic way but it’s just one example of you reaping what you sow."

"Thank you, God for providing strength in everything I do and allowing me the opportunity to work hard Love you with all my heart ❤️"

Chance Comanche -- the NBA G Leaguer arrested for his alleged role in the murder of a woman earlier this month -- confessed to cops that he strangled the female before burying her body in a Nevada desert ... this according to new court documents.

In the docs, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department investigators say through a series of interviews ... they learned that Comanche and his ex-girlfriend, 19-year-old Sakari Harnden, played a role in the disappearance of Marayna Rodgers -- and when they spoke to the basketball player about it all ... he fessed up to killing her.

Officials say Comanche had arrived in Las Vegas to participate in a G League game with his team, the Stockton Kings, on Dec. 4 -- but developed a plan with Harnden to kill Rodgers a short time later due to an apparent dispute the women had gotten into previously.

In the docs, officers claim Comanche told them he and Harnden had lured Rodgers out on Dec. 6 with the promise that they'd pay her for sexual acts.

Cops say Comanche told them they got Rodgers into a car -- and after picking up a bottle of booze from a nearby liquor store, they made it seem like they'd have intercourse with her inside of the ride.

However, according to the docs, Comanche told cops he pulled out an HDMI cord and strangled Rodgers for around 10 seconds. He allegedly let go -- though cops say he told them Harnden continued to choke her -- until she became unresponsive.

Officials say Comanche told them that once they believed Rodgers was dead -- they dumped her body in a ditch and then buried it with rocks.

Comanche was arrested on Dec. 15 while he was practicing for the Kings (the team released him later the same day). He was initially booked on a kidnapping charge, though officials later said he'd be formally charged with murder.

The 27-year-old, 6-foot-10 center -- who played in one NBA game in his career -- showed up in court in Sacramento County on Tuesday and appeared stoic -- before indicating he wouldn't fight extradition. It's expected he'll now be transported to Vegas in the coming days.

Travis Kelce is considered one of the best dressers in the NFL ... and his style might be rubbing off on his girlfriend's fam -- 'cause the Kansas City Chiefs superstar is loving Taylor Swift's dad's latest wardrobe choice!!

TK was giving his take on the Swift clan supporting him against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium during Wednesday's episode of his "New Heights" podcast with his brother, Jason ... when the conversation turned to 71-year-old Scott's fashion statement at the game.

"Mr. Swift!" Kelce said when a shot of Taylor and her pops standing in a suite showed up on the screen ... "Full Chiefs gear."

"It's kinda looking really nice on him, man," he added. "It's a swaggy vintage joint. He's rocking it, man."

Kelce also pointed out how everyone in attendance seemed to really enjoy themselves -- even the Pats fans, who erupted in cheers when Taylor showed up on the scoreboard ... despite her rooting for the other team.

"You don’t see an entire home team fanbase go insane for someone wearing the opposite colors," TK added ... explaining it's a prime example of "how amazing that girl is."

"They went absolutely insane when they showed Taylor on the screen."

Kelce -- who's usually calm, cool and collected -- even revealed he had to make sure he didn't get overwhelmed when he noticed the crowd reaction.

Brittany Mahomes says she's seeing a surge in trolls on her Instagram amid her budding friendship with Taylor Swift ... revealing Tuesday there's "A LOT more rude ass people" bothering her on the app these days.

The 28-year-old mother of two has unfortunately grown used to critics on her social media pages as the wife of Patrick Mahomes ... but she took to her IG stories this week to announce it's all gotten much worse -- all while she's becoming good pals with Travis Kelce's new flame.

"Recently there has been ALOT more rude ass people on here," she wrote, "waaaay more then normal."

"I'm not sure where yall came from," she continued, "but you should probably go back to where you came from .... please."

Brittany never specifically mentioned her relationship with Swift in her statement ... though it certainly seems it's all connected -- as the gals have been pretty much inseparable since September, when the pop star and Kelce went public with their relationship.

Of course, Brittany is sadly more than used to the online hate ... as the most outspoken fan of Patrick, she's been a lightning rod for criticism.

In fact, at one point last year, she even had to call out a commenter for their inappropriate response to a pic of her and her family.

For his part, Patrick has been to known come to her defense ... saying of her haters  following an incident in 2022, "Man people are weird."

After 235 days away from the NBA hardwood, Ja Morant apparently still knows his way around the hoop -- scoring the winning shot in his first game back!!

The Grizzlies superstar had been barred from the court to start this season while serving a 25-game suspension for a string of incidents involving gun-related social media videos ... but in his return against the Pelicans on Tuesday night, his presence was felt right away.

He logged 34 points and 8 assists on the road game in New Orleans -- but, most importantly, he nailed a floater in the lane with no time left in regulation to win the game for Memphis, 115-113.

And, afterward, he had a big-time message for his haters ... saying simply as he ran into the locker room, "I kept receipts!"

Morant, of course, had developed a bevy of critics after he was seen on social media waving around a gun not once, but twice. He had also been accused last year of attacking a teenager during a pickup game at his home. It all eventually led to NBA commish Adam Silver sidelining him.

But, Morant took all the steps the NBA and the Grizzlies required for him to rejoin the team ... and after his big night against the Pels, he said there were certainly some low points while he was away from his teammates.

"I haven't played a game in eight months," he said. "I had a lot of time to learn myself, a lot of hard days where I went through it. But, you know, basketball is my life, what I love. It’s therapeutic for me and I'm just excited to be back."

Dmitry Bivol -- one of the biggest names in boxing -- is giving Jake Paul his flowers ... telling TMZ Sports the internet star's fighting career is impressing the hell out of him.

"To be honest," Bivol told us just days after Paul scored a violent knockout win over Andre August, "I like that the guy who's not boxer, he really loves the sport."

"We see he's training hard. I respect him for this."

Of course, when Paul first got into the boxing biz, many saw it as a gimmick -- as he was fighting social media personalities and former professional athletes. In fact, Canelo Alvarez said back in 2020 that Jake and his brother, Logan, were displaying a "lack of respect" for the fight game with their choices of matchups (an opinion he later changed his tune on).

But, Bivol made it clear to us he's loving what he's seeing from Jake -- saying the 26-year-old is taking all the right steps when it comes to being a real-deal pugilist.

"He's going and doing his fighting," said Bivol, who beat Canelo back in May 2022. "He's not just like, 'I will beat everyone' and think like this."

Paul is currently 8-1 in his career with five knockouts -- and he's made such an impact on the sport through his nine fights so far, Team USA boxing just partnered with him so he can help promote Olympic fighters as they get ready for the Paris Games in 2024.

As for Bivol's own boxing career -- he's got a big tilt coming up this weekend against Lyndon Arthur on DAZN's Day of Reckoning card ... but, if he gets by that matchup, don't expect him to get in between the ropes with Paul anytime soon.

Logan Paul and KSI are rivals-turned-business partners, but they got back to beating each other up during a backyard football game with Patrick Mahomes this week ... when the WWE Superstar went all Ray Lewis on his buddy's ass!!

The two Prime entrepreneurs suited up in pads and helmets to run some routes with the Kansas City Chiefs superstar ... and when the two-time Super Bowl champ told J.J. to run a "Corndog left," Logan was there waiting to make the punishing tackle.

Logan's hit was so fierce, it made both their helmets come off ... and he was super hyped about drilling KSI into the ground.

In fact, Mahomes' pass was off target ... but if his route running is any indication of his ability on the football field, it probably wouldn't have made a difference if the pass hit him in the hands!

Of course, the trio were together as part of their new Prime partnership ... with Mahomes joining the company as its newest sponsored athlete.

Deep breath paisanos, PR crisis averted for Tommy DeVito! 😰

Just hours after the NYG signal caller caught grief online, DeVito made things right with a local Jersey restaurant owner and fans by showing up and hanging out with a gang of Big Blue fans ... where he took photos, signed autographs, and ate!

The controversy started this week when the owners of Coniglio's Old Fashioned pizzeria in Morristown (NJ) accused the 25-year-old rookie of going back on his word, alleging Tommy agreed to a $10k appearance fee, only to double his rate after the Giants' big MNF win over the Packers on December 11.

But, we're told the whole thing was just a big misunderstanding.

Sean Salci, DeVito's marketing agent and attorney, told us his client wasn't aware of what was going on, and there was never a concrete deal in place.

Still, DeVito was criticized, and the young signal caller wanted to make everyone happy ... so he made a surprise appearance at the pizza parlor.

"DeVito and the owner made good," Salci said. "He got the full experience today."

There hasn't been a more popular player across the league over the last month than DeVito -- an undrafted rookie (2023) -- who took over the starting job when Daniel Jones and Tyrod Taylor went down with injuries.