Football

The NFL is shining a light on Damar Hamlin's recent charitable efforts -- the Buffalo Bills safety was just selected as the Community MVP for Week 18 after giving back to his hometown during the holidays.

Hamlin received the honor for his 4th annual toy drive that went down last month ... where he distributed more than 2,000 toys, hundreds of books, and 50 bikes to hundreds of kids in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania.

Hamlin has been helping out those in his area since before his NFL days, but this one was extra special -- it was the first toy drive since he suffered cardiac arrest against the Bengals on Jan. 2, 2023.

Hamlin said one of his first memories waking up after the incident was seeing the $9 million raised for his fundraiser. With the exceeded amount, Hamlin did his own personal Santa Claus impression, donning the big man's classic red suit and spreading some holiday cheer.

In a year that began with turbulence, this was one of the brightest moments for Damar ... which he explained when speaking about the drive.

"I just couldn’t wait for this," Hamlin said. "I've received so much love, so many blessings. I just couldn’t wait to pay them all forward."

The full $9 million raised after Hamlin's medical emergency won't just help his toy drive -- he said it will also go toward improving his community through CPR education, sporting events in the summer, and turkey drives.

Aaron Rodgers has received a huge honor from the Jets -- he was just named the team's Most Inspirational Player ... this despite only playing a few seconds for NY in the 2023 season.

The Jets revealed the award for their signal-caller on Friday morning ... announcing the injured quarterback got the trophy over stars like Garrett Wilson, Sauce Gardner, Quinnen Williams and others.

Head coach Robert Saleh explained at a meeting with reporters just minutes ago that players themselves made the choice ... saying that it shows just how valuable Rodgers was to the team this season -- even though he couldn't actually get off the sidelines.

"I've said it a million times," Saleh said, "he loves his teammates and his teammates love him."

"He's a tremendous human and well-deserving of the award."

Rodgers, of course, arrived in New York with Super Bowl expectations, but he tore his Achilles just four snaps into the season-opener against the Buffalo Bills on Sept. 11 ... and never returned to the field.

He did work like a mad man to get back -- and he actually ended up returning to Jets practices late in the year, albeit in a limited capacity. And, clearly, his teammates appreciated the effort.

Warren Moon says if he were coaching the Ravens, he wouldn't sit Lamar Jackson, Odell Beckham Jr. or any other starter this week -- telling TMZ Sports he believes the moves could seriously ruin their chances at a Super Bowl.

Of course, with the No. 1 seed in the AFC already locked up, John Harbaugh revealed earlier this week Jackson and several others will take a seat on the bench against the Steelers on Saturday in order to stay healthy for the postseason.

Moon, though, doesn't think that idea's so great ... explaining that because Baltimore has a bye in the first round of the playoffs, there's now a far greater chance the squad will be rusty when it finally kicks off its divisional round game in more than two weeks.

"As a football player," the Hall of Famer said, "you want to stay within that routine and that habit of what you've been going through the whole season to make you successful."

Moon said he's by no means advocating playing Jackson and co. the full game against Pittsburgh -- he just thinks a few series could mitigate any potential problems down the road.

"That's the only thing that concerns about this team and some of the guys that they're sitting down," the ex-quarterback said. "How sharp are they going to be in three weeks after going through a season where they're used to playing week after week after week?"

In addition to Jackson ... three other starters -- Beckham, Marlon Humphrey and Kevin Zeitler -- have already been ruled out. Star rookie Zay Flowers and star defensive back Kyle Hamilton appear poised to miss the game too.

Nonetheless, Moon still believes the Ravens have done enough to show him they're the NFL's best heading into 2024.

Thirty-seven hours and 2,627 strokes later, Barstool Sports personality Jersey Jerry finally did it -- he hit a hole-in-one on a golf simulator ... after huge names like Tom Brady rallied behind the guy on his grueling journey.

For those who haven't been keeping up, the beloved Barstool employee does weekly challenges on his "Jerry After Dark" show ... and this time around, he tasked himself with playing virtual golf until he carded an ace.

As it turns out, Jerry's self-imposed quest was a LOT harder than expected ... and he quickly lost hope in achieving the feat.

Some big stars in the sports world voiced their support for Jerry -- golfers Brooks Koepka and Max Homa ... and even TB12 himself, who sent an encouraging X post to stay the course.

"It's darkest before dawn," the 7-time Super Bowl champ said Thursday morning.

Just minutes later, the moment of glory happened -- Jerry hit his perfect shot, and the entire room erupted in celebration.

Even the PGA Tour chimed in on the accomplishment ... congratulating JJ on the "LegenJerry" performance.

Jerry gave a speech shortly after reaching glory ... and naturally, the diehard Pittsburgh Steelers fan used it as an opportunity to ask T.J. Watt out to dinner.

"T.J. Watt, listen," an emotional and fatigued Jerry said. "I love you so much, bro. We couldn't make dinner happen last year, my dream is to have dinner with T.J. It could be one-on-one, it could be multiple people. I don't care. I just want to have a nice steak, mashed potatoes, asparagus, mac and cheese with T.J. Watt."

The inferno at Tyreek Hill's mansion on Wednesday was caused by a child playing with a lighter ... this according to officials.

A spokesperson for the Davie Fire Department in Florida confirmed to TMZ Sports that investigators believe a youngster inside a bedroom at Hill's Southwest Ranches home started the blaze.

It's unclear if the child is related to Hill or how exactly it was able to ignite the flames -- though according to the DFP rep, because officials formally identified it all as "accidental," no further investigations are taking place.

As we reported, firefighters were first notified of the flames at around 1:50 PM ET ... and a short time later, they were able to knock down the blaze with a water hose.

Officials say, fortunately, no one was injured.

Hill was at Dolphins practice when the fire first broke out -- and, according to the team, he left early to handle the issue. He was seen on the scene at around 3 PM ET with his wife looking concerned as he watched officials try to contain the blaze.

Drew Rosenhaus -- Hill's agent -- said, though, in an interview with 7News that his client was in good spirits despite the situation.

"It is very difficult for anybody, obviously, to have your home catch on fire," Rosenhaus said, "but Hill was handling it with as much poise as you can hope."

El infierno en la mansión de Tyreek Hill el miércoles fue causado por un niño jugando con un encendedor, esto según los funcionarios.

Un portavoz del Departamento de Bomberos de Davie en Florida confirmó a TMZ Sports que los investigadores creen que un niño dentro de un dormitorio de la casa de Hill en Southwest Ranches inició el incendio.

No está claro si el niño está relacionado con Hill o cómo fue capaz de prender el fuego, aunque de acuerdo con el representante del DFP, no se realizarán más investigaciones porque los funcionarios identificaron formalmente el caso como "accidental".

Como informamos, los bomberos fueron notificados del incendio alrededor de las 1:50 PM ET y poco después, fueron capaces de apagarlo con una manguera de agua.

Las autoridades dicen que, afortunadamente, nadie resultó herido.

Hill se encontraba en el entrenamiento de los Dolphins cuando se encendieron las llamas y, según el equipo, se fue antes para ocuparse del asunto. Fue visto en la escena alrededor de las 3 PM ET, muy preocupado con su esposa, mientras observaba a los funcionarios intentando contener las llamas.

Drew Rosenhaus, agente de Hill, dijo en una entrevista con 7News que a pesar de todo su cliente estaba de buen humor.

"Es muy difícil para cualquiera, obviamente, que tu casa se incendie", dijo Rosenhaus, "pero Hill lo estaba manejando con tanto aplomo como se puede esperar".

A Seahawks fan says Marshawn Lynch turned into Beastmode outside of a Seattle bar over the weekend ... smashing his phone during an altercation.

The Hawks supporter's name is Jose Lozano ... and he tells TMZ Sports the incident all happened in front of Xtadium in downtown Seattle on Sunday at around 1:30 AM.

Lozano says he tried to get a pic with Lynch inside of the bar earlier in the night -- but was denied by the Seahawks legend's friends ... who told him straight up, "No pictures."

However, when Lozano spotted Lynch outside of the establishment a short time later, he made one final attempt to get the former Seattle tailback to stop for a photo before he called it a night.

In video from the scene, you can see Lozano approach Lynch -- who's wearing a Beastmode sweatshirt -- and yell, "Marshawn! Beastmode! Let me a take a --."

Suddenly, though, Lynch appears to lunge at Lozano's phone -- before the footage cuts out.

Lozano tells us once the camera stopped rolling, Lynch grabbed his phone and screamed, "Y'all mother f***ers are weird," before he busted up the device with his hands. Eventually, Lozano said he was able to get the phone back just prior to Lynch leaving the area.

Lozano tells us he didn't realize his phone -- an iPhone 14 that he purchased just a few months ago -- was broken until several minutes had passed, but he said he has no intentions of going to police now over the incident because he's such a huge fan ... although he did say he wished Lynch hadn't been so "rude."

This, of course, is not the first time Marshawn has been accused of swiping at fans' phones ... back in 2017, he smacked a phone from a man's hands while out at LAX.

Rick Ross just so happens to be neighbors with Tyreek Hill -- and was home as the Miami Dolphins' star's mansion went up in flames earlier this afternoon -- documenting the inferno in real-time.

The MMG rapper immediately jetted out to his front lawn Wednesday when he spotted the smoke, met by fire truck sirens and helicopters swirling the Southwest Ranches community.

The Boss captured the fire trucks working overtime in attempts to douse the flames.

Rozay gave his take on the source of the blaze, saying he believed it was caused by an electrical disturbance.

Chandler Jones is adding to his body ink collection -- this time, the current NFL free agent decided to have the word "Messiah" forever etched across the top of his head.

33-year-old Jones shared footage of his most recent tattoo session at a shop in Arizona on Wednesday ... showing an artist putting the needle to his dome as he calmly sat through the process.

After the job was finished, Jones said he heard his late mother, Camille, tell him to stop getting tattoos.

Jones has seemingly hit a rough patch since the Las Vegas Raiders cut him back in September ... including numerous run-ins with law enforcement and bizarre Instagram posts.

It's unclear what exactly is going on with the Super Bowl champion ... but his followers have expressed concern and support in the comment section of his uploads.

TMZ Sports is told Chandler has been staying with his brother, Arthur, recently ... and being around family has done a lot of good for his situation.

12:28 PM PT -- A spokesperson for the Davie Fire Dept. tells TMZ Sports ... they first received a call about the fire at Tyreek Hill's home at around 1:50 PM ET.

There were occupants inside the residence when the blaze broke out, the spokesperson said ... but all were safely evacuated and no one suffered any injuries.

The spokesperson added the fire is currently under control -- though it's yet to be determined what started it all.

12:06 PM PT -- Tyreek Hill and his wife have just shown up at the property.

The Dolphins star -- wearing a white T-shirt, sweats and a boot to protect his injured ankle -- looked concerned as he watched firefighters put out the blaze.

A Florida home belonging to NFL superstar Tyreek Hill has caught on fire ... and rescue crews are now on the scene working to put out the blaze.

Flames could be seen poking through the roof of the Southwest Ranches mansion throughout Wednesday afternoon ... and firefighters have been attempting to knock down the inferno with a water hose for much of the last hour or so.

Thankfully, a spokesperson for the Dolphins told media members neither Hill nor his family are in any danger. The Miami rep added Hill has left Fins practice to go get a handle on the situation.

Hill -- who was traded to the Dolphins prior to last season -- reportedly purchased the place in 2022 for nearly $7 million.

He's in the middle of an MVP-caliber season -- logging 112 catches for 1,717 yards and 12 TDs.

The Dolphins are slated to play in a pivotal game against the Buffalo Bills on Sunday night that will decide the AFC East.

12:11 PM PT -- A judge has just approved the prosecutors' motion to drop the three felonies against Jackson Mahomes.

He's now slated to return to court in late March -- as he's still facing one misdemeanor charge in the case.

Prosecutors are working to drop the felony charges against Jackson Mahomes ... after they claim the alleged victim in the case against Patrick Mahomes' little brother is no longer cooperating.

Officials at the Johnson County District Attorney’s Office in Kansas filed a motion to dismiss the three aggravated sexual battery counts against Jackson on Tuesday ... and a judge is expected to a make a ruling on the filing at a hearing later Wednesday afternoon.

In the court documents, prosecutors say the restaurant owner who first accused Jackson of forcibly kissing her inside of her Overland Park establishment back in February 2023 has now told them she does not want to continue to press charges in the case -- stating that she wishes "the matter to be dismissed as to anything involving" her.

Prosecutors said in the docs, however, they tried to move forward with the case regardless ... writing that the incident involving Jackson and the woman "was captured in its entirety on surveillance footage."

But, they added that the woman has made it abundantly clear she no longer wants anything to do with the case -- claiming she told them she would say "that she had not been truthful to the police and that the encounter with [Jackson] was consensual."

A dismissal of the three felony counts would mean Jackson is only facing one misdemeanor battery charge in the case ... which stems from allegations he shoved a waiter at the restaurant the same night that he had the run-in with the woman.

"Like I said from the beginning," Jackson's attorney, Brandon Davies, said in a statement to FOX 4 on Tuesday, "Jackson has done nothing wrong. We had full confidence that the truth of the matter would ultimately be revealed. The defense will reserve further comment until the remaining count is disposed of."

Jackson first pleaded not guilty to the charges shortly after they were filed last year. He's expected to attend Wednesday's hearing in-person.

Pat McAfee is apologizing for his involvement in the growing feud between Aaron Rodgers and Jimmy Kimmel ... saying he understands where both sides are coming from, but is hoping they can make amends and get past it.

As we previously reported, the late-night host unloaded on social media following the New York Jets quarterback's appearance on the "Pat McAfee Show" on Tuesday ... threatening legal action after Rodgers suggested Kimmel could be named as one of Jeffrey Epstein's associates.

The former NFL punter-turned-TV host addressed the crap-storm that ensued on Wednesday's show ... saying that's not something he wants to be involved in, and while the allegations are certainly serious, he doesn't feel the four-time MVP really meant it.

McAfee explained his program's format allows open discussion ... which can lead to solid headlines, but also lawsuits -- just like what happened when Brett Favre sued him after comments he made about his current welfare funds case.

PM said he believes Rodgers' comment was "certainly, probably" just a "s***-talk joke" ... but can see why Kimmel reacted the way he did.

McAfee pointed out he knew it was time to switch the subject as soon as it came out of Rodgers' mouth ... especially because he doesn't want to give their feud a platform, as he prefers to keep things light-hearted on his show.

Channing Crowder has a bone to pick with his former team ... telling TMZ Sports he's upset the Dolphins left Tua Tagovailoa and Bradley Chubb in during their blowout loss on Sunday -- leaving them vulnerable to injuries.

The former Miami linebacker said he wished Mike McDaniel had pulled all of his guys from their 56-19 game against Baltimore ... because he thinks it could've saved the Fins' two stars from getting hurt.

"That game, at that juncture," he said, "down by that much -- 30-plus points -- you pull out the starters. You fold up camp. Whatever you want to say. And you get ready for Buffalo Bills."

McDaniel, of course, didn't do that ... and Tagovailoa sustained a shoulder injury that has him day-to-day, while Chubb tore his ACL.

Crowder says the decision could now cost the Dolphins dearly.

"If the Dolphins are healthy, they can play with anybody in the league," Crowder said. "But, now you start getting these injuries after injuries, and that's when it's going to go downhill for the Dolphins."

Going forward, Crowder implored his ex-team to bring in some edge rushers help to offset injuries that Jaelan Phillips and Chubb have now suffered.

Jimmy Kimmel y Aaron Rodgers se están enfrentando en las redes y todo por Jeffrey Epstein y su lista de asociados, la que pronto será desenmascarada.

El presentador de televisión está amenazando al mariscal de campo de los Jets de Nueva York con acciones legales después de que Aaron sugiriera en televisión, que Jimmy podría ser uno de los asociados de Epstein.

Jimmy acaba de disparar de vuelta en las redes, refiriéndose a Aaron como "Querido Aassh***e, (idiota)" diciendo que sus imprudentes palabras ponen en peligro a su familia.

Por si te lo perdiste, Aaron estaba en "The Pat McAfee Show" el martes cuando dijo que estaría celebrando la liberación de los asociados de Epstein.

Aaron dijo: "Mucha gente, incluyendo a Jimmy Kimmel, están realmente esperando que eso no salga".

Jimmy está negando vehementemente que tenga nada que ver con Epstein y está atacando a Rodgers como un "chiflado de cerebro blando" que "parece que no puede distinguir de la realidad".

Jimmy Kimmel and Aaron Rodgers are beefing ... and it's all over Jeffrey Epstein's soon-to-be unmasked list of associates.

The late-night TV talk show host is now threatening the New York Jets quarterback with legal action after Aaron suggested on live TV, Jimmy might be one of Epstein's associates.

Jimmy just fired back on social media, ripping Aaron -- who he addresses with "Dear Aassh***e," saying the QB's "reckless words put my family in danger."

In case you missed it ... Aaron was doing his scheduled Tuesday hit on "The Pat McAfee Show" when he said he would be celebrating the release of Epstein's associates.

Aaron said ... "A lot of people, including Jimmy Kimmel, are really hoping that doesn't come out."

Jimmy's vehemently denying having anything to do with Epstein whatsoever ... and he's blasting Rodgers as a "soft-brained wacko" who "can't seem to distinguish from reality."

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper is going to have to bust out his check book -- he was just fined $300k for chucking his drink toward a group of fans during Sunday's loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

The billionaire hedge fund manager -- the richest owner in the league -- was spotted dumping his beverage in anger after an apparent exchange with a group of supporters amid the 26-0 blowout ... and the whole thing was caught on video.

The clip is short ... and it's unclear what led to the incident.

The NFL announced the punishment on Tuesday ... labeling the incident "unacceptable conduct."

Tepper -- who bought the Panthers in 2018 for $2.3 billion -- released a statement following the news ... saying, "I am deeply passionate about this team and regret my behavior on Sunday."

"I should have let NFL stadium security handle any issues that arose. I respect the NFL’s code of conduct and accept the League’s discipline for my behavior."

It's been a disastrous 2023 season for the Panthers -- they're 2-14 and will not have their first-round pick next season.