Football

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.

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.

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.

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."

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.

Kim Zolciak and Kroy Biermann are desperate to unload their Georgia mansion to mitigate their money woes ... evidenced by the fact they just dropped their asking price by a serious chunk of change.

The on-and-off couple -- who are still in the middle of a divorce -- are now asking $5,500,000 for their Milton, GA estate ... after initially listing it for $6 mil in October.

Not the biggest slash in the world, but it is substantial ... and obviously, they hope the move will get someone to bite. Time will tell if it works -- fact is, the housing market is a bit sluggish right now, and interest rates are quite high.

The other thing to consider here, comparable houses in their immediate area -- in some cases, on the same street -- are going for considerably less money ... so they might need to go even lower than this.

Remember, Kroy was recently begging a judge to allow him to put the house up for sale as a way to deal with the mounting debt they find themselves in ... and it looks like he and Kim finally got on the same page, despite their ongoing back-and-forth feuding/making up.

Whether they end up sticking at $5.5M or dropping their price to a bit less, they'll still clean up compared to what they bought this crib for back in 2012 ... just $880,000 at the time.

Kim Zolciak y Kroy Biermann están desesperados por vender su mansión en Georgia para mitigar sus problemas financieros, lo que queda en evidencia al ver que acaban de bajar su precio de venta por un buen monto.

La pareja, que todavía está en medio de un divorcio, ahora está pidiendo $5,500,000 por su propiedad en Milton, Georgia. En octubre estaba listada en $6 millones.

No es el mayor recorte del mundo, pero es sustancial y obviamente esperan que el movimiento atraiga a algún comprador. El tiempo dirá si funciona, la verdad es que el mercado de viviendas está un poco lento en este momento y las tasas de interés bastante altas.

Otra cosa que hay que tener en cuenta es que las casas comparables de la zona, en algunos casos en la misma calle, se venden por muchísimo menos dinero, así que puede que tengan que bajar el precio aún más.

Recuerden, Kroy recientemente le rogó a un juez que le permitiera poner la casa a la venta como una manera de hacer frente a la creciente deuda que tienen, y parece que él y Kim finalmente están en la misma página, a pesar de sus continuas idas y venidas.

Ya sea que terminen rebajando en $550k o un poco más, aún así van a ganar bastante en comparación al precio de compra de 2012, de solo $880,000 en ese momento.

Derrick Ward, a former NFL running back and Super Bowl champion, was arrested this week in Los Angeles for allegedly committing multiple robberies around the city, TMZ Sports has learned.

43-year-old Ward, an L.A. native, is accused of robbing several businesses, including gas stations, over a recent period of time.

Law enforcement tells us ... Ward did not use a gun during the alleged robberies -- but officers say he did use force and fear to get money from the stores.

Ward was taken into custody on Monday afternoon and booked into jail around 6:30 PM. His booking information lists him at 6 feet tall, and 230 lbs.

DW was a 7th-round pick (NY Jets) in 2004 ... and also spent time with the NY Giants, Tampa Bay Bucs and Houston Texans over his 8-year professional football career.

Derrick -- who at one point signed a $17 million contract -- was a member of the NYG Super Bowl-winning squad that beat Tom Brady's undefeated New England Patriots to cap the 2007 season.

Ward played in 93 NFL games, carrying the rock 551 times for 2,628 yards. He had 15 total touchdowns ... 12 of them rushing.

Derrick is still in custody, according to jail records ... and bail has been set at $250K.

Derrick Ward, ex jugador de la NFL y campeón del Super Bowl, fue arrestado esta semana en Los Ángeles por presuntamente cometer múltiples robos en la ciudad, según ha podido indagar TMZ Sports.

Ward, de 43 años y nativo de Los Ángeles, está acusado de robar en varios negocios, incluyendo gasolineras durante un período de tiempo reciente.

Las autoridades dicen que Ward no utilizó un arma de fuego durante los presuntos robos, pero que sí usó la fuerza y atemorizó a las personas para obtener dinero de las tiendas.

Ward fue detenido el lunes por la tarde y puesto tras las rejas a las 18:30 horas. Su información personal revela que mide 6 pies de altura y pesa 230 libras.

Derrick Ward fue parte de la selección de 7ª ronda de los New York Jets en 2004 y también pasó tiempo con los Giants de Nueva York, los Tampa Bay Bucs y los Houston Texans durante sus 8 años de carrera profesional en el fútbol.

Derrick, que en un momento firmó un contrato de $17 millones, fue miembro de la NYG Super Bowl, el equipo ganador y que venció a los invictos Patriots de Nueva Inglaterra de Tom Brady para cerrar la temporada 2007.

Ward jugó en 93 partidos de la NFL, llevando la roca 551 veces por 2.628 yardas. Tuvo 15 touchdowns totales, 12 de ellos corriendo.

De acuerdo con los registros de la cárcel, Derrick todavía está bajo custodia y la fianza se ha fijado en $250K.

Drew Lock was rightfully feeling himself after leading the Seattle Seahawks to a comeback win over the Philadelphia Eagles on "Monday Night Football" ... turning up right in front of the cameras and appearing to let the expletives fly!!

The backup quarterback threw an absolute dime to Jaxon Smith-Njigba in the final minute of Seattle's 20-17 win ... and the guy couldn't contain his emotions as he celebrated the 29-yard tuddy.

"Put that f***ing s*** on, motherf***er!!" the lip readers over at The Sporting News believe Lock said during the broadcast ... although mics didn't exactly pick up the message.

Lock was filling in for starter Geno Smith, who has missed the past two games due to a groin injury.

Many didn't expect Lock to lead his team down the field to hand the Eagles their third-straight loss and fourth on the season ... and after the game, he gave an emotional interview on what the accomplishment meant to him.

"I'll remember that play call for the rest of my life," Lock said.

"It's so hard to describe the feeling of not playing for so long -- or at least what feels like a really long time to me -- and then you sit there and watch games, you wonder, 'Can I do this still?' I haven't been out there on the field. That's the human nature of it."

Rejoice, Eagles fans ... Jalen Hurts has just arrived at Lumen Field despite dealing with a gnarly illness -- and, as of right now, the quarterback looks set to play in the pivotal game against the Seahawks.

Of course, about 24 hours ago, it was unclear if Philadelphians would see the sight -- because the signal-caller had reportedly been battling some bad flu-like symptoms last week that worsened overnight Saturday.

In fact, things apparently got so miserable for Hurts over the weekend, the Eagles officially downgraded his status for the Seattle game to "questionable."

However, Hurts eventually made his way to Washington on Sunday -- and on Monday afternoon, just a couple hours before "Monday Night Football" kickoff, he strolled into the stadium looking OK.

The 25-year-old rocked sunglasses and carried his own bags ... moving without any noticeable hitch in his gait.

The Eagles could certainly use his presence -- they need to keep winning if they want to hold off the Dallas Cowboys for the NFC East crown.

Rashard Mendenhall wants to see the NFL's annual All-Star game get a big-time makeover ... suggesting the Pro Bowl evolve into -- get this -- a contest that pits the league's Black players vs. its white ones.

The ex-Pittsburgh Steelers star came up with the eyebrow-raising idea after he said he became agitated listening to white people break down NFL action.

"I'm sick of average white guys commenting on football," the former Super Bowl champion said in a post on X.

"Y’all not even good at football. Can we please replace the Pro Bowl with an All-Black vs. All-White bowl so these cats can stop trying to teach me who’s good at football."

The statement was polarizing ... though ex-NFL star J.J. Watt actually seemed to have some kind of fun entertaining the idea.

"We’d get cooked at corner, not gonna lie," Watt said in a comment on the post. "Nobody on our squad is covering Tyreek [Hill]." He added a crying/laughing emoji as well.

Steelers safety Damontae Kazee has just been sidelined for the rest of this season ... after the NFL slapped him with a suspension for his dangerous hit on Michael Pittman Jr. over the weekend.

In a statement announcing the ban on Monday, the league said the blow -- which happened in the second quarter of Pittsburgh's loss to Indianapolis on Saturday -- was "a serious violation of the playing rules."

The play was one of the most violent of the season -- Kazee left his feet and made contact with Pittman Jr.'s head/neck -- and the NFL made it clear when revealing Kazee's punishment it doesn't want that kind of act ever repeated again.

"You had an unobstructed path to your opponent and the illegal contact could have been avoided," NFL exec Jon Runyan said in a letter to Kazee revealing the suspension. "Your actions were flagrant, and as a result, you were disqualified from the game."

Kazee will now miss Pittsburgh's games against the Bengals, Seahawks, Ravens and any potential playoff games this season.

Runyan noted in his letter that previous violations factored into Kazee's lengthy ban.

"When players violate the rules intended to protect player safety on a repeated basis, and particularly when the violations carry with them a significant risk of injury to an opposing player, it is appropriate to impose substantially greater penalties," he said.

If Red Bull gives you wings, Logan Paul and KSI have rockets strapped to their backs ... Prime Hydration is exploding, and now the company has struck an endorsement deal with one of the biggest athletes in the world, Patrick Mahomes!

28-year-old Mahomes inked a deal with the YouTubers-turned-drink moguls ... as the two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback becomes the face of Prime Hydration, joining other athletes like Israel Adesanya, Alex Volkanovski and "Bud" Crawford.

"PRIME is a disruptive brand that has taken over the beverage industry since it first launched. They are gamechangers, and that's exactly what I strive to be on the field. Our partnership is a winning play, merging innovation and excellence, setting a new standard both on and off the field," Mahomes said.

"It's an honor to join the PRIME family alongside some of the greatest athletes, leagues and teams in the world."

The deal is different than your run-of-the-mill sponsorship agreement ... we're told Logan, KSI, Patrick, and Prime have plans to collaborate on a bunch of different charitable efforts.

In fact, Prime has already donated $100k in support of Patrick's 15 and the Mahomies Foundation.

KSI and Paul are clearly thrilled they've landed a guy like Mahomes, who fits right in with the brand.

"At PRIME, we believe in teaming up with greatness, and Patrick Mahomes isn't just one of the best quarterbacks of all time; he's rewriting the record book and bringing a whole new level of excitement to the game," Logan and KSI said.