Football

Lil Wayne is waving the white flag to call a truce with Chicago Bears QB Caleb Williams ... while eating a little crow in the process.

The rap icon -- a diehard Green Bay Packers fan -- took to X to publicly squash any lingering beef with the Chicago signal-caller after Williams rallied the Bears to a fourth-quarter comeback playoff win on Saturday over their rivals.

Wayne had dissed Williams in the aftermath of the game ... but he admitted there was no hate, just pain.

The Mike Tomlin era in Pittsburgh has come to an end -- the Super Bowl-winning head coach has informed the Steelers he is stepping down as head coach.

Team President Art Rooney II confirmed the news minutes ago, saying Tomlin shared his decision in a meeting earlier on Tuesday.

"Obviously, I am extremely grateful to Mike for all the hard work, dedication, and success we have shared over the last 19 years," Rooney said. "It is hard for me to put into words the level of respect and appreciation I have for coach Tomlin."

George Kittle is usually the guy smiling through contact ... but even the NFL’s toughest tight end is admitting this one stings.

The San Francisco 49ers’ All-Pro team captain tore his right Achilles on Sunday, ending his season during the team’s 23-19 victory to dethrone the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles in the playoffs.

Kittle later took to Instagram with a raw, emotional post of him and his wife, Claire, in the locker room, straight-up telling fans "football sucks sometimes."

Not exactly the rah-rah cliché you'd expect, but Kittle didn’t stop there.

The Pro Bowler made it clear he’s far from broken ... saying he loves the game, his teammates and is overwhelmed by the love pouring in.

"Heartbroken but have felt so much love and support from everyone reaching out," Kittle wrote. "I’ll be good. Thank you. We aren’t done yet!"

The grueling injury often takes about nine months to fully recover from -- placing the 32-year-old’s NFL future in jeopardy as he enters his 10th season.

Teammates such as Christian McCaffrey, Ricky Pearsall, Eddy Pineiro and Demarcus Robinson were among the flood of comments offering support to Kittle, who also seemingly confirmed reports of the bottle of Patrón delivered to the locker room after he was carted off.

Kittle said, "You know you’re in a special place" when team owner Jed York is the first person to meet you in the locker room. York was reportedly the one who sent the bottle.

Aaron Rodgers went to bat for his coach, Mike Tomlin, after the Pittsburgh Steelers' season ended in the Wild Card Round on Monday ... calling it an "absolute joke" to think the guy could get fired.

Rodgers met with the media following the Steelers' 30-6 loss to the Houston Texans, and despite it being Steel City's seventh playoff loss in a row, he can't wrap his head around the chatter Tomlin's tenure might be over.

"The way that the league is covered now, the way there is snap decisions and the validity given to the Twitter experts and all the experts on TV now who make it seem like they know what the hell they are talking about, to me that's an absolute joke," Rodgers said.

Sam Beal -- a former NFL Draft selection by the New York Giants in 2018 -- has been missing for the last seven months ... and now his sister has gone to social media to plead for the public's help.

"We've done everything we could on our end to piece things together and at this point we're in desperate need of support on all ends," Beal's sister, Essence Zhane, said. "I'm not here to answer a bunch of why's and how's I just need this to land in the right direction to gain some form of answers or closure."

According to his profile on the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, the 29-year-old was last seen in July 2025 after dropping his girlfriend off at her house. He was supposed to use her car to drive to work, but instead, allegedly made his way to Virginia Beach.

Buffalo Bills wide receiver Gabe Davis is showing off his battle scars after leaving Sunday's AFC Wild Card game with a busted knee ... an injury that still looks horrible a day later.

Davis took to his Instagram Monday morning to show off his wounds after he was carted off in the 4th quarter of a tight game against the Jaguars in Jacksonville ... which Buffalo ultimately won 27-24.

Despite nearly a full day passing, Gabe's knee is still clearly screwed up ... with bad bruising and swelling around the area. Still, the veteran wideout isn't sweatin' things, writing “Nothin but a bit of a flesh wound.”

Cooper DeJean's brother is in trouble with the law ... cause TMZ has learned Beckett DeJean was arrested for operating while intoxicated.

According to jail records, seen by TMZ, Beckett was taken into custody Sunday morning in Iowa on a first offense DUI/OWI, which is classified as a misdemeanor but still carries serious penalties.

Beckett was a defensive back for the South Dakota Coyotes, where he played as a redshirt freshman. Beckett's older brother Cooper is currently an NFL cornerback for the Philadelphia Eagles.

Steelers legend James Harrison says longtime head coach Mike Tomlin ain't goin' anywhere, telling TMZ Sports his job is "100% safe" for the 2026-27 season.

We spoke with the two-time Super Bowl champ ahead of Monday night's Texans vs. Steelers Wild Card game ... a matchup set up by Pittsburgh's stunning win over the Ravens last week.

In fact, the game's losing head coach, John Harbaugh, lost his job after taking the L.

Many people believe Tomlin could suffer the same fate with a loss in the playoffs, but Harrison doesn't think so.

The key to the Jacksonville Jaguars’ turnaround from one of the NFL’s worst teams last season to one of the best entering this year's playoffs is simple!

Kicker Cam Little tells TMZ Sports it all stems from first-year coach Liam Coen, who instilled a winning culture with a basic mindset change.

“Liam has harped on taking it 1-0 each week and that mindset is a tough one to beat,” Little said. “Whoever we play next week, that’s all we’re focused on. We’re not focused on the second round, third round, AFC, Super Bowl, we're not focused on anything besides who we play on the weekend. When you have that 1-0 mindset, it builds for a good culture because you’re playing for everything the next week.”

Antonio Brown will soon be able to leave the confines of Miami and travel across Florida -- if only for a few days -- after a judge approved the former NFL star's request to traverse the Sunshine State for business.

Brown's lawyer, Mark Eiglarsh, filed a motion on Monday, seeking the court's permission to allow Brown to make the four-hour, roughly 280-mile drive from the southeastern tip of the peninsula to the west coast of the state for six days.

"During this period, Mr. Brown has several scheduled work-related meetings and business engagements with Energetic Exotic, Florida's premier exotic and luxury car rental company," Eiglarsh wrote, according to court documents. "In addition, he has multiple prearranged music studio sessions."

Lipreaders might have caught New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart shedding light on the organization's next head coach ... when he appeared to say it's down to two guys.

Standing on the sidelines of Thursday’s Ole Miss vs. Miami Fiesta Bowl to support his alma mater in the College Football Playoff semis, cameras briefly showed Dart on the broadcast ... and it sure looked like he was having a conversation about who could be his next coach.

"I don't know ... Harbaugh or Stefanski ... but I don't know," he appears to have said, according to internet sleuths dissecting the viral moment.

Prime Video host Taylor Rooks makes a living talking to athletes ... but it turns out she was doing that LONG before it was her career ... 'cause she babysat them!!

Rooks revealed this week on the "Downs 2 Business" podcast, hosted by football stars Josh and Caleb Downs, that she took care of the two brothers from sixth grade up to her senior year of high school while growing up northeast of Atlanta.

Josh is now a 24-year-old wide receiver with the Indianapolis Colts, and younger brother Caleb, 21, is expected to be a top-10 pick in the upcoming NFL Draft as a defensive standout from Ohio State -- time flies!!!

Rough start to the offseason for Washington Commanders defensive back Marshon Lattimore -- he was arrested in Ohio Wednesday night on weapons charges.

According to WKYC ... Lattimore was booked around 6:15 PM in Lakewood -- about 15 minutes outside of Cleveland.

Cops say the nine-year NFL veteran was a passenger in a car that was stopped for an expired license plate and "other traffic violations." Lattimore allegedly did not inform the officer that a weapon was inside the vehicle when initially asked -- and he was placed in cuffs.

Another NFL head coaching position has opened up -- the Miami Dolphins fired Mike McDaniel on Thursday after four seasons with the team.

The org. made the announcement just minutes ago. Owner Stephen Ross said the decision came after "careful evaluation and extensive discussions" that have been ongoing since the end of the season.

"Mike is an incredibly creative football mind whose passion for the game and his players was evident every day. I wish him and his family the best moving forward," Ross added.

Brett Favre is fact-checking a recent report on his health ... saying while his Parkinson's has progressed, he is by no means throwing in the towel.

A popular sports social media account stated this week the Gunslinger has "given up hope" amid his battle with the disease ... an erroneous post that reached nearly two million sets of eyeballs.

We reached out to 56-year-old Brett ... and he scoffed at the idea he's accepting defeat.

John Harbaugh is on the hunt for a new gig after Baltimore Ravens fired him on Tuesday ... and he's now got a pretty big name ready to send a reference letter if needed -- President Donald Trump!

45/47 took to his Truth Social platform on Wednesday morning to make it clear that the Super Bowl champion should not be collecting unemployment checks for very long.

"HIRE JOHN HARBAUGH, FAST," Trump wrote. "HE AND HIS BROTHER, ARE TOTAL WINNERS!!!"