Atlanta Falcons

Julio Jones was one of the greatest players of his era ... but he hasn't reconsidered his decision to retire one bit -- telling TMZ Sports he gave football his all, and he's loving his freedom to do whatever the heck he wants now!!

The former Atlanta Falcons superstar officially walked away from the sport in April 2025 ... finishing his career with several All-Pro and Pro Bowl selections -- and even a spot on the 2010s All-Decade team.

When we caught up with No. 11 at LAX, we asked how he's holding up a year after saying goodbye to the NFL ... and he's happy as could be.

Atlanta Falcons player James Pearce Jr. is dodging a trial in his Rickea Jackson case after agreeing to enter an intervention program.

Pearce -- who was hit with felony aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, fleeing police, and resisting arrest, as well as misdemeanor stalking, after a Feb. 7 domestic dispute -- will take part in the program for six months under strict guidelines.

As part of the agreement, Pearce will not be allowed to make contact with or be near the WNBA star ... and must take part in therapy sessions.

Atlanta Falcons defensive end James Pearce Jr. is no longer facing a charge of aggravated battery on a law enforcement officer after his alleged domestic dispute with Rickea Jackson, TMZ Sports has learned.

Court documents we obtained show that prosecutors have dropped the charge against the 22-year-old. A spokesperson for the DA said in evaluating all the evidence, they didn't believe they could prove it beyond a reasonable doubt.

It's a small break for Pearce -- the charge comes with up to five years behind bars.

He isn't out of the woods at all, though ... as prosecutors filed a handful of other charges in the incident -- including stalking, fleeing and eluding police, resisting an officer with violence, and aggravated battery with a deadly weapon.

WNBA star Rickea Jackson filed for a restraining order days after she was the alleged victim in a domestic dispute with Atlanta Falcons defensive end James Pearce Jr. ... telling the court she was in fear for her life, and feared that without the order, "James will kill me."

According to docs -- obtained by TMZ Sports -- Jackson went to court on Feb. 9 to seek a temporary injunction for protection against her ex-boyfriend, which was granted. A hearing for a permanent injunction is scheduled for next month.

As part of the order, Pearce Jr. is not to have contact with Jackson or be within 500 feet of her residence. He's also been ordered not to come within 100 feet of her car at any time.

The Atlanta Falcons wasted no time cutting ties with assistant LaTroy Lewis -- hours after the coach was accused of sexual assault, the team announced he's been fired from his role.

The Falcons made the announcement Friday, not long after they confirmed they were looking into the disturbing report.

The allegations against Lewis stem from his time as an assistant coach at the University of Michigan from 2023-24. A woman claims Lewis raped and attacked her in separate incidents -- with the article including graphic messages Lewis allegedly sent the woman.

If James Pearce Jr.'s case goes to trial, the alleged victim, Rickea Jackson, is down to take the stand, according to her attorney, who notified the court she's "willing to testify."

Jackson's lawyer filed notice on Tuesday, saying Jackson remains cooperative, and if needed, will give her testimony about the alleged incident with her ex-boyfriend, which led to his arrest on Saturday.

Rickea's attorney also indicated she hopes to put the matter behind her, sooner rather than later.

James Pearce Jr. "intentionally" hit an officer with his Lamborghini while evading law enforcement after an alleged domestic dispute with WNBA star Rickea Jackson, according to police docs obtained by TMZ Sports.

Jackson told police she and Pearce Jr. recently ended a three-year relationship, saying she blocked the 23-year-old’s number to stop further contact, but it didn't work. Rickea told police James used an alternate phone to continue contacting her.

On February 7 -- as she was leaving an apartment complex -- Jackson noticed Pearce Jr.'s Lambo SUV behind her ... and attempted to get away. While at a red light, she says he approached her vehicle and attempted to open the door.

John Harbaugh's unemployment lasted just 11 days -- the Super Bowl-winning head coach is taking over the New York Giants.

The 63-year-old reportedly agreed to a five-year deal ... which will undoubtedly make him one of the highest-paid coaches in the NFL.

Harbaugh released a statement on the move ... saying, "It's the New York Football Giants."

It's safe to say Todd Bowles wasn’t in a great mood after his Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost on a last-second field goal to the Atlanta Falcons ... going on an expletive-laced postgame press conference -- calling his team’s performance "in-f***ing-excusable."

Bowles met with the media after Falcons kicker Zane Gonzalez lifted Atlanta to a 29-28 win to send the Bucs to a 7-7 record following "Thursday Night Football," and he wasn’t hiding his feelings.

“It's inexcusable," Bowles said. "We don't make excuses. You gotta f***ing care enough where the sh*t hurts. You gotta f***ing care enough where the sh*t hurts. Gotta f***ing mean something to you. It's more than a job, it's your f***ing livelihood. How well do you know your job? How well can you do your job? You can't sugarcoat that sh*t.”

Jamal Anderson, former Atlanta Falcons star running back, was arrested in Los Angeles on Tuesday after an alleged physical altercation.

Cops told NBC L.A. that they responded to a home in the San Fernando Valley for an alleged dispute around 11 AM. While there, they determined that the dispute began as a verbal argument but escalated into a physical altercation, with Anderson allegedly strangling the victim.

Jamal was eventually thrown in cuffs and hauled off to jail on suspicion of felony domestic violence. Jail records indicate he is currently being held on $50,000 bond.

Kyler Murray was remorseful after a recent social media post resulted in a ton of backlash ... telling reporters he meant no harm when he shared a picture of himself wearing a Michael Vick jersey while posing with a dog.

Murray addressed the controversy during his media availability on Wednesday ... when he explained, "In no way, shape, or form do I condone animal cruelty or dog fighting, whatever it is."

"I saw how it affected people and decided to take it down," he said. "So, I apologize to anybody and whoever I affected with that."

A Georgia news station had a hard time getting Michael Penix Jr.'s name right in a lower third this week ... creating a scene that had plenty of grown adults giggling like school children.

Check out the way WTOC 11 in Savannah presented Penix Jr.'s press conference on its Wednesday evening broadcast ... it accidentally wrote Michael "Penis" Jr. on a graphic identifying the Falcons quarterback.

To be fair, the X and the S are close by on a keyboard -- and we're sure it's happened plenty of times to Atlanta reporters since the 25-year-old joined the team last year ... but social media users nonetheless ate it up.

Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar are both up for an Emmy following their respective music performances during the 2024-25 NFL season ... and TMZ Sports asked Ray-Ray McCloud who he would have his vote for the prestigious award -- and he said he has to give the nod to K. Dot!!

We gave the hard-hitting question to McCloud when we linked up with the wide receiver/music producer ... and he said Kendrick's Super Bowl halftime show edges out Beyoncé's Christmas performance.

"Beyoncé's was hard," he said. "You can't knock Beyoncé. She's one of the best performers ever. But Kendrick, the moment, the whole setup, the aesthetic, all of it man."

Cordarrelle Patterson isn't moping about getting released from the Pittsburgh Steelers this week ... but he IS mopping.

The NFL vet took to his Instagram to post a late-night story Wednesday ... letting his followers know his life now consists of household chores instead of resting his body for training camp.

He also included a shameless tag of the cleaning company he was using ... perhaps a sponsorship will help him keep food on the table?? We kid, the guy has made nearly $43 million on the field in his career.

12:08 PM PT -- Jeff Ulbrich just addressed the matter during media availability on Wednesday ... publicly apologizing to Shedeur and the Sanders family -- as well as the entire Falcons organization -- for what transpired.

Ulbrich said his failure to protect confidential information was "inexcusable" ... and same goes for Jax's role in sharing it.

Ulbrich said the family will not appeal the fine ... and they promise to work hard and prove they're above this whole ordeal.

The NFL just punished the Atlanta Falcons and defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich for their roles in the Shedeur Sanders draft day prank call ... stating the org. and coach messed up by allowing confidential info to get leaked.

The Falcons were fined $250k and Ulbrich an additional $100k for "failing to prevent the disclosure of confidential information distributed to the club in advance of the NFL Draft."

Sanders was on the receiving end of a bogus phone call on Day 2 of the event ... with a male pretending to be New Orleans Saints GM Mickey Loomis hitting the ex-Colorado quarterback's private line and telling him he'd have to wait a bit longer before getting picked.