Football

Jimmy Kimmel won't let go of his feud with Aaron Rodgers, blasting the NFL player during his late-night show for trying to tie him to notorious sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein .... explaining the impact it had on him and his family.

In his opening monologue Monday night, the host of "Jimmel Kimmel Live" came out swinging against Aaron, who claimed on the "Pat McAfee Show" that "I was nervous" that the "Epstein list" was coming out and "I was hoping it wouldn't."

Jimmy said Aaron was going to "pop a bottle of something" because the comedian's name would be on the list, but, as it turned out, it wasn't anywhere near it.

Last week, court documents related to Epstein's underage sex ring were unsealed, revealing some prominent names -- although not Jimmy's -- connected to the now deceased former business tycoon.

Jimmy made it abundantly clear he had never met Epstein – and Aaron had defamed him, daring the Super Bowl champ to share any evidence in court.

Jimmy noted that Aaron's many fans believed the lies, putting the funnyman and his family in the crosshairs of "delusional" people who became spiteful.

He also speculated on why Rodgers made the false claim, coming up with several scenarios, before hitting on the most likely one ... Aaron is still mad at Jimmy for roasting him over his appearance and "wacko" beliefs.

As you probably recall ... Jimmy poked fun at Aaron's hair knot on top of his head and his anti-vaccination "lies" re: coronavirus.

Jimmy's monologue went on and on before he asked for an apology, and he promised to accept ... although JK is not holding his breath.

The inferno at Tyreek Hill's mansion caused the NFL superstar's property to lose over $2 million in value ... this according to an incident report obtained by TMZ Sports.

In the docs, officials say the Southwest Ranches, Fla. residence -- which the wide receiver bought for $6.9 million in 2022 -- had an estimated value of $5.6 million before the flames ... but the blaze caused some $2.3 million in damages.

What's worse for Hill ... officials also said in the docs they believe around $1 million worth of stuff was destroyed during the incident as well.

Authorities provided a little more detail on how they believe the blaze all started ... writing in the documents that two kids at the home told them they had been playing with a lighter which they "thought was a toy and accidentally lit a toy on fire."

"They got scared," officials said, "threw the toy, and ran."

According to the report, the child who started the fire was a 4-year-old.

The report states no one was injured ... and an investigation into the blaze is now closed.

As we reported, a 911 caller initially told law enforcement of the fire at around 1:50 PM ET on Jan. 3. Hill was not present at the time it broke out ... though he did leave Dolphins practice early to tend to the matter.

Taylor Swift se está despertando en un lugar inusual… por primera vez en mucho tiempo, NO ganó un premio, y hay evidencia de que la pérdida en los Golden Globes, junto con ser señalada por el presentador Jo Koy, no le sentó nada bien.

Los fans con vista de águila notaron que Taylor no estaba entre la multitud del Beverly Hilton el domingo por la noche después de que su película “Eras Tour” perdiera en la categoría de Logro Cinematográfico y de Taquilla frente a “Barbie”.

La gente comenta en línea: “Estoy 90% segura de que Taylor se fue del evento, no se le ha visto desde lo de Barbie” … Otro agregó: “Es tan divertida”.

Taylor fue vista dando una ovación de pie al elenco y equipo de “Barbie” cuando subieron a recibir el galardón, así que su partida puede que no haya sido por despecho, al menos no hacia ellos.

Ahora, una fuente de la entrega de premios nos dice que Taylor dejó su asiento poco después de la categoría de Logro Cinematográfico para ir al baño, y terminó viendo el resto del espectáculo desde la parte trasera. Mencionan que abandonó el lugar por completo unos 15 minutos antes de que terminara el evento.

Como informamos, había otra cosa que podría haber molestado a Taylor: fue el blanco de una broma al principio de la noche cuando Jo Koy bromeó sobre cómo la NFL tiene más tomas de cámara de Taylor en comparación con los Golden Globes.

Pareció visiblemente molesta por el comentario, así que tal vez fue en ese momento cuando decidió retirarse una vez que anunciaron su categoría.

Taylor Swift is waking up in an odd place ... for the first time in a long time, she did NOT win something, and there's evidence the Golden Globes loss -- and getting called out by host Jo Koy -- didn't sit well with her.

Eagle-eyed fans noticed Taylor was nowhere to be seen in the crowd at the Beverly Hilton Sunday night after her "Eras Tour" film lost the Cinematic and Box Office Achievement category to "Barbie."

Folks started chiming in online, with one saying, "90% sure taylor has left the event she hasn’t been seen since barbie" ... another added, "Shes so funny."

For what it's worth, Taylor was spotted giving the "Barbie" cast and crew a standing ovation as they went up to grab their award, so her leaving might not have been out of spite -- at least, not toward them.

Now, a source at the award show tells us Taylor left her seat shortly after the Cinematic Achievement category to go to the restroom, and ended up watching the rest of the show from the back. We're told she did leave the venue altogether about 15 minutes before the Globes ended.

As we reported, there was one other thing that could've upset Taylor -- she was the butt of a joke earlier in the night as Jo Koy poked fun at how the NFL has more camera shots of Taylor compared to the Globes.

She seemed visibly annoyed by the remark -- so, maybe that's when she decided she'd dip out once her category was announced.

Riña salvaje entre dos hombres a las afueras del juego de los Tennessee Titans del domingo… lanzando puñetazos en medio de un estacionamiento.

Aún no está claro el motivo exacto qué provocó la trifulca en Nashville… pero según los comentarios de los hombres partícipes, un par de comentarios sobre una mujer desencadenaron todo.

En el video se aprecia que los espectadores intentaron separar a los hombres antes de que comenzaran los puñetazos… pero finalmente lograron su cometido y empezaron a golpearse.

Durante varios momentos, intercambiaron golpes… pero fueron separados. Sin embargo, los dos lograron reanudar la pelea segundos después.

Finalmente, un golpe de derecha hizo que uno de los hombres se estrellara contra el suelo… poniendo fin al confrontamiento.

Es incierto si la policía intervino en algún momento o si se realizaron arrestos. Hemos contactado a la policía, pero hasta ahora no hemos recibido respuesta.

Taylor Swift se convirtió en la reina de hielo de los Golden Globes 2024 después de que el presentador Jo Koy hiciera un chiste sobre su asistencia a los juegos de la NFL de su novio Travis Kelce.

La ícono pop estaba sentada en su mesa escuchando el monólogo de apertura de Koy en el evento de las estrellas del domingo por la noche, cuando ocurrió el breve pero incómodo momento capturado en video.

Joe estaba daba su monólogo en el escenario cuando de repente hizo un chiste sobre Taylor, diciendo: “cuál es la diferencia entre los Golden Globes y la NFL-- en los Golden Globes tenemos menos tomas de cámara de Taylor Swift”.

Luego, Taylor apareció en la pantalla de TV, clavando la mirada en Joe mientras fruncía los labios y daba un sorbo a su bebida, pues Taylor no estaba nada divertida.

Para suerte de Joe, no hubo más acciones por parte de Taylor… ¡Al menos que sepamos!

Claro, Joe solo bromeaba un poco sobre Taylor, quien asiste religiosamente a los juegos de Travis para animarlo mientras las cámaras de televisión la enfocan constantemente en las secciones VIP. El ala cerrada de los Kansas City Chiefs sale con Taylor desde hace un tiempo, y ambos parecen muy enamorados.

Taylor no fue la única celebridad a la que Jo irritó en los Golden Globes de anoche. También lanzó una estocada a “Barbie”, que no le hizo mucha gracia al protagonista, Ryan Gosling.

Joe también hizo un chiste sobre la coprotagonista de Gosling, Margot Robbie, pero su broma no tuvo éxito, lo que lo llevó a decir que él no la había escrito.

It's the most nerve-wracking time of the year for NFL coaches on the hot seat -- Black Monday -- and some guys are already without a job ... including Ron Rivera and Arthur Smith.

The Commanders made their announcement just minutes ago ... saying after four seasons with the franchise, it was time to move on from Riverboat Ron.

Rivera went 26-40-1 during his time on the sidelines ... including one playoff appearance in 2020 after winning the NFC East. He won Coach of the Year honors that same season.

During that period, Rivera fought a bout with squamous cell carcinoma, but did not miss a single game while receiving treatment.

The Commanders will be a sexy option for coaches -- they have the No. 2 overall pick in the upcoming draft ... and new owners Josh Harris and Magic Johnson are eager to turn the franchise around.

The team has hired former Golden State Warriors GM Bob Myers to help with its coaching search, according to reports.

As for Smith, the Atlanta Falcons decided to give him the ax on Sunday ... after going 7-10 each of the past three seasons.

Falcons head coach Arthur Blank addressed the move in a statement ... saying, "Decisions like this are never easy and they never feel good."

"We have profound respect for Coach Smith and appreciate all the hard work and dedication he has put into the Falcons over the last three years. He has been part of building a good culture in our football team, but the results on the field have not met our expectations."

"After significant thought and reflection, we have determined the best way forward for our team is new leadership in the head coaching position."

Two men got in a wild fistfight outside of the Tennessee Titans game on Sunday ... throwing haymakers right in the middle of a parking lot.

It's unclear exactly what sparked the melee in Nashville ... but based on commentary from the guys in the fight, it seems a remark or two about a woman in the area set it all off.

You can see in video from the scene, bystanders tried to separate the guys before the fists started flying ... but ultimately the men were able to get a hold of each other and started to pound on one another.

For several moments, they traded blows ... but they were pulled away from one another. However, the two were able to reconvene the fight just seconds later.

Eventually, a right hand sent one of the men crashing to the ground ... mercifully ending the battle.

According to the Nashville Police Dept., no arrests were made.

"It looks like it had dissipated at the end of the video when an officer is seen," a police spokesperson said. "There were no calls."

Taylor Swift turned into the ice queen at the 2024 Golden Globes after host Jo Koy cracked a joke about her attending her boyfriend Travis Kelce's NFL games.

The pop icon was sitting at her table listening to Koy's opening monologue at the star-studded event Sunday night when the short, but uncomfortable moment occurred on video.

Check it out ... Joe was rattling off his monologue onstage when he suddenly pivoted to a wisecrack about Taylor, saying, "The big difference between the Golden Globes and the NFL -- on the Golden Globes we have fewer camera shots to Taylor Swift."

Taylor then flashed on the TV screen, staring daggers back at Joe as she pursed her lips and took a sip of her drink. Fair to say Taylor was not amused in the least.

Luckily for Joe no further action was taken by Taylor ... that we know of!!!

Of course, Joe was just poking a little fun at Taylor for religiously attending Travis' football games to cheer him on as the TV cameras constantly pan to her in the VIP sections. The Kansas City Chiefs tight end has been dating Taylor for a while now – and the two seem to be in love.

Meanwhile, Taylor wasn't the only celeb to have their feathers ruffled by Joe at the Globes last night. Joe threw a barb at "Barbie," which landed flat with the film's star, Ryan Gosling.

Joe also made a crack about Gosling's costar, Margot Robbie, but his joke fizzled, prompting him to say he didn't write it.

The Philadelphia Eagles not only lost to the Giants on Sunday, their star quarterback nearly lost function of an important digit on his throwing hand too.

Jalen Hurts suffered the gnarly finger injury during the second quarter of Philly's game against New York ... after the signal-caller banged his hand on linebacker Bobby Okereke's during a pass attempt.

Replays showed the collision with the Giants star was so violent, it popped Hurts' finger right out of place.

To his credit, Hurts hardly flinched ... and after a short trip to the medical tent, he somehow returned to the field.

A few minutes later, though, head coach Nick Sirianni pulled Hurts and other key starters as it became apparent the Eagles were going to lose the game.

Warren Moon is doling out some seriously high praise on Michael Penix Jr. ... telling TMZ Sports the Washington quarterback straight up "throws as pretty a ball as mine!"

The former Huskies signal-caller didn't stop the compliments there, however ... telling us he believes the current UDub QB1 could end up being the No. 2-ranked quarterback behind Caleb Williams when the 2024 NFL Draft officially rolls around in April.

"I watch him throw," Moon said, "and I've watched a lot of quarterbacks throw the football -- and this guy throws as pretty a ball as mine."

"I think once he goes through the scouting process," the Hall of Famer added, "and goes through the combine and people watch him throw and they watch him throw in his Pro Day coming up, I think he's going to really dazzle people with his arm talent."

Moon says that while Penix Jr. put all of that on display against Texas in the Sugar Bowl -- he really expects the college football world to take note when the Huskies kick off against Michigan for the national championship later Monday night.

Moon explained ... he believes that due to UDub's location as well as the Pac-12's TV deal, not many are aware of what the quarterback is really capable of.

"He's had a tremendous two years at the University of Washington," Moon said.

Kickoff for the natty is slated for 4:30 PM ... and it's clear Moon believes his alma mater will walk away from it all with another trophy for its case in Seattle.

If J.J. McCarthy's able to pull off the win vs. Washington on Monday night, he will go down as the best Wolverines quarterback EVER -- at least, that's according to Ty Law.

The Pro Football Hall of Famer and former Michigan star made it clear to TMZ Sports that all McCarthy needs to do from here in order to claim the title of UM G.O.A.T. is simply just beat the Huskies.

"If he pulls this off," the ex-defensive back said, "you know what, he's going to stand alone being the only undefeated quarterback in the history of the program."

UM has had some historically great signal-callers over the years -- the list includes Tom Brady, Chad Henne, Elvis Grbac, Jim Harbaugh and a whole lot more -- but Law says McCarthy's resume will top them all if he's able to bring the CFP trophy back to Ann Arbor.

Of course, there might not be that many people who would argue against Law ... after all, McCarthy is 26-1 as a starter -- and is perfect against Ohio State.

Harbaugh certainly wouldn't be one who would fight Ty over the issue -- he said following Michigan's Rose Bowl win over Alabama that McCarthy is already the Wolverines' best ever.

Robert Nelson Jr. -- a former Arizona State Sun Devils football star who spent three seasons in the NFL -- was arrested in Los Angeles last month for allegedly illegally possessing a gun ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Law enforcement tells us the arrest happened in Burbank back on Dec. 22.

We're told Burbank Police officers were patrolling a local mall parking lot at around 9 PM when they observed Nelson's vehicle in a handicap spot without a placard.

Cops say when officers looked into the car, they noticed a loaded handgun sitting in plain view on the floorboard. They later located Nelson and threw him behind bars.

Court records show Nelson was charged with one count of carrying a loaded firearm on/in person vehicle ... and was arraigned on Dec. 26. He's now due back in court in late February for another hearing on the matter.

Nelson Jr., a defensive back, played for ASU from 2011 to 2013 and became a star for the Sun Devils in his senior year, recording First-Team Pac-12 honors after logging six interceptions.

He went unpicked in the 2014 NFL Draft ... but still managed to latch on with several NFL teams -- earning playing time with the Browns, Texans and Jets from 2014 to 2017.

The Dawg Pound is rallying behind Joe Flacco with their wallets amid the Browns' surprising winning streak ... with fans rushing to buy the backup-backup-backup QB's jersey!!!

The former Super Bowl winner's journey back to the gridiron has been one of the biggest storylines of the season -- he went from sitting on the couch on Sundays to leading the Browns to a 4-1 record after Cleveland lost Deshaun Watson and rookie Dorian Thompson-Robinson to injuries.

TMZ Sports has learned ... No. 15 threads have been a hot commodity since Flacco took over under center in December.

Fanatics -- the league's official e-commerce partner -- tells us Flacco is among the top 20 most popular jerseys in the NFL ... and is currently the top-selling Browns player.

In fact, we're told the sales spiked more than 400% during the span of his first victory on Dec. 10 to his playoff berth-clinching performance on Thursday Night Football against his former New York Jets team on Dec. 28.

FYI, Flacco has led the Browns with 1,616 yards and 13 touchdowns in just five games ... which is more than he had when he played for the Jets in TWO seasons.

It's been quite the feel-good story after Flacco tried to find a new home for the past five seasons. Remember, Joe signed with the Denver Broncos, Jets and Philadelphia Eagles after spending 11 years with the Baltimore Ravens.

He won Super Bowl XLVII with the Ravens in 2013, their second in franchise history.

If Jim Harbaugh does indeed leave Michigan following this week's national championship game ... Tyrone Wheatley is making it clear he'd love to be considered for the gig, telling TMZ Sports the role is his "dream job."

Of course, rumors have swirled for weeks that Harbaugh might be looking to make a jump back to the NFL after finding so much success with the Wolverines since 2015.

It's unclear if there's any validity to the chatter -- though if it does ultimately end up being true, Wheatley said he sure wouldn't mind filling in.

"To play there, to come back now to be the head coach, goodness gracious," the ex-Wolverines running back said, "to check that off the bucket list, that'd be awesome."

Wheatley certainly has the résumé to be a candidate for the opening if Harbaugh bolts ... he's had a ton of coaching experience since he wrapped up his 10-year NFL career in 2004.

The 51-year-old has had stops as an assistant with the Buffalo Bills, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Denver Broncos ... and he was even an RBs coach for Harbaugh a few years back. He's now working as the head coach of Wayne State.

While Wheatley is adamant he's focused on his current role -- it's obvious, there will always be a piece of his heart in Ann Arbor.

"It would be crazy for me not to say that's my dream job, right?" he said.

Wheatley told us coaching for his other former team -- the Raiders -- would also be considered a "dream" gig for him.

As for if he has any insider information on whether Harbaugh is staying or going -- he doesn't, telling us, "I'm not sure at this point he knows."

ESPN is distancing itself from Aaron Rodgers' recent comments about Jimmy Kimmel ... chalking his controversial appearance on "The Pat McAfee Show" up to a bad attempt at comedy.

The New York Jets quarterback sparked an intense feud with the ABC late-night host earlier this week ... when he suggested Kimmel could be among the famous names on Jeffrey Epstein's client list.

Kimmel was furious with Rodgers ... firing back by claiming the comments could put his family in danger -- and threatening to take legal action if he continued to bark up that tree.

Mike Foss -- ESPN's senior vice president of digital and studio production -- addressed the whole issue in an interview with Front Office Sports on Friday ... and he said the comments never should have came out of Rodgers' mouth.

"Pat announced today that he’s planning on Aaron joining the show Tuesday," Foss told the outlet. "Aaron made a dumb and factually inaccurate joke about Jimmy Kimmel."

"The show will continue to evolve. It wouldn’t surprise me if Aaron’s role evolves with it."

Based on the latter part of that statement, it certainly sounds like the network won't step in and prevent Rodgers from going back on the show ... but on Friday's show, Pat accused ESPN exec Norby Williamson of sabotaging his program amid the drama.

Of course, the beef between Rodgers and Kimmel is complicated -- McAfee and the TV personality are both in the Disney family and wildly popular in their respective fields.