LA Chargers

LA Chargers star Austin Ekeler isn't just jacked ... he's 1-armed-pull-ups-while-reading-a-book jacked ... and the dude put it on full display in a crazy video on Instagram!!!

Fresh off scoring the game-winning TD against the Chicago Bears on Sunday ... the 24-year-old celebrated a "peaceful victory Monday," complete with a workout and some literature.

FYI -- Austin and his GF, Taylor are OBSESSED with fitness ... and the couple likes to incorporate their relationship into some unique workouts.

Hey, the dude has been putting up numbers this season ... racking up 8 touchdowns, more than 250 rushing yards and 500 receiving yards.

Antonio Gates says he's waiting by the phone for NFL teams to call him ... telling TMZ Sports he's "ready to play" ... and he's definitely NOT retired.

Of course, Gates is a Chargers legend -- racking up 8 Pro Bowls, 3 All-Pro selections during his 16-year career in San Diego/L.A.

The future Hall of Famer has been teamless since leaving the Bolts in 2018 ... and he tells us he's been staying in tip-top shape in case anyone needs a tight end.

"I'm ready to play if I need to play. If somebody gave me a call, I'm ready. I'm in shape."

Here's Keenan Allen losing his mind over seeing Melvin Gordon return to the Chargers' locker room ... screaming his face off while filming the star running back!!!

Gordon's been holding out from the Chargers for the last 2 months ... wanting a new deal that pays him significantly more than the $5.6 million he was set to make this year.

But, Melvin decided to end his holdout Thursday despite not having a new deal ... and clearly his teammates are fired up to see his comeback.

Allen filmed Gordon walking into the locker room ... and the receiver couldn't have been happier -- even joking about the RB bringing in his own pads!!

Gordon seemed happy as hell to be back too ... the guy had a HUGE smile on his face.

Melvin reportedly won't play this weekend ... but all signs are pointing toward him getting back on the field next week when the Chargers play the Broncos.

We can think of at least one Bolts legend who's loving that news ...

Melvin Gordon is BACK ... well, almost.

The L.A. Chargers superstar running back will end his holdout and return to the team on Thursday ... but will NOT play this weekend against the Dolphins.

Gordon has been holding out since July while he demanded the team either give him a new contract or to trade him to another team.

The holdout is officially coming to end 3 weeks into the season ... with Ian Rapoport reporting Gordon is rejoining his team.

We spoke with Chargers legend Antonio Gates on Tuesday about Gordon's status with the team ... and he said his old teammate deserves to be paid like Ezekiel Elliott, who just agreed to a $90 million extension with the Cowboys.

No word on whether that'll happen -- Gordon's in the final year of his rookie deal, making $5,605,000.

Antonio Gates is going to bat for his ex-teammate ... telling TMZ Sports the Chargers need to pay Melvin Gordon ASAP -- and they need to give him Ezekiel Elliott money when they do!!!

MG has been sitting out this season in hopes of getting a fat new deal ... and the Bolts have struggled without him -- going just 1-2 in their first 3 games.

Gates says the solution is just to pay Gordon, telling us when we got him out at Avra in Bev Hills this week, "Melvin Gordon is the answer. They need to get Melvin Gordon back."

As for how much Dean Spanos should pay the star RB ... Gates says the deal belongs in the same stratosphere as the 6-year, $90 MILLION contract that Zeke just got from the Cowboys.

"He means a lot to the Chargers and to our organization," Gates says. "You can sense that as the season gets going, the absence of him is starting to have more effect."

Gates -- the Chargers' all-time receptions leader -- says it's obvious to him the team is really missing Gordon when it gets down in the red zone, saying, "He's big time."

But, don't worry Chargers fans ... Gates says he believes the deal will all get worked out soon, telling us, "I think he's going to get paid."

Melvin Gordon fantasy owners ... DON'T CUT HIM YET -- the running back says he's playing "somewhere" this season!!!

The Chargers superstar has been sitting out for the last couple months wanting a new contract in L.A. ... but as his backup, Austin Ekeler, tears it up on the field -- it doesn't seem the big bucks are coming MG's way anytime soon.

So, when the tailback went on Instagram Live on Tuesday from some park in San Diego ... he guaranteed you'd see him on the field this year -- just maybe not in Chargers colors.

"Going to play somewhere," Gordon said ... "It would be a waste of talent [if I didn't]."

Melvin's vid has since been deleted ... but we got the message loud and clear -- start trading for the guy in your fantasy leagues ASAP!!!

By the way, Melvin also spoke about the Chargers' lack of fans in the vid -- and you can tell he didn't love the support his team got in Los Angeles.

Melvin Gordon should stand strong in his holdout from the Chargers ... so says Rashad Jennings, who tells TMZ Sports the RB should do it until he gets a new, fully guaranteed deal!!!

MG has been playing hardball with Los Angeles for the past few weeks wanting a fresh contract ... and the negotiations appear to have gotten pretty ugly.

In fact, reports say the Chargers could ultimately end up trading the superstar tailback before the season begins.

Jennings -- a former NFL running back himself -- tells us Gordon should keep the fight going, even if it means a trade down the line ... saying, "Set a standard!"

"Matter of fact, get it all guaranteed, too!"

Jennings says it's rare that a player has this kind of leverage over a team ... and he's all for the player using it.

L.A. Chargers defensive end Melvin Ingram REALLY likes his team's top draft pick -- telling TMZ Sports the addition of Jerry Tillery makes the Bolts "the best D-line in the league!!"

Ingram was out in L.A. over the weekend showing off his sick diamond chain, when we asked about Tillery -- the star defensive tackle from Notre Dame who was selected by the Chargers with the 28th overall pick in the draft.

Safe to say Ingram is PUMPED -- telling us multiple times how DOMINANT the Chargers defensive line will be now that it's stacked with himself, Joey Bosa and Tillery.

Tillery is a monster -- 6'6" and 295 pounds -- and he logged 8 sacks in 2018 while leading the Fighting Irish to an undefeated regular season record.

The 22-year-old is smart too -- he graduated from ND last May with a degree in economics.

As for the Chargers defense, they were already pretty stacked last year -- finishing 9th overall in total team defense, according to NFL.com.

Remember when Le'Veon Bell posted one of his new rap vids, asked people what they thought about it ... and Keenan Allen hit him back with the brutal "this ain't it" response??

Well ... here's Bell's chance to get revenge ... 'cause the L.A. Chargers star posted a video of himself dabbling in music -- singin' a Daniel Caesar song and playing the piano!!

The initial exchange between the 2 NFLers got personal -- with Bell calling Allen a troll, and KA claiming he was just keeping it real.

Now, Allen has posted a video in croonin' to the Caesar and H.E.R. hit, "Best Part" ... while playing the piano himself.

As for Allen's performance, it's not bad though he acknowledges he needs to keep working -- adding the caption, "Practice Makes Perfect."

Plus, that ain't an easy song to sing -- especially with the high notes -- but Allen didn't do a bad job.

Le'Veon Bell innocently went to Twitter to ask his followers what he thought of his new song on Sunday ... and Keenan Allen did exactly that with a BRUTALLY honest response.

"I gotta keep it band bro. This ain’t it" (while adding a garbage can emoji).

DAMN!

The NY Jets star didn't take the public criticism lightly ... telling Allen to hit him up directly if that's how he really felt.

"if youu honestly felt that way, youu could’ve just txted me and said that," Bell responded, "but it seems even ppl with check marks wanna troll to seek attention for mentions now a days..."

"enjoy this buzz fuzz, it’s still all positive vibes."

Now, remember ... it's April Fools Day. So, is this all just a prank to get people all worked up?? The LA Chargers star's follow-up suggests otherwise.

"I was not trolling on my momma bro. I don’t troll. Like I said I speak facts. You shouldn’t have asked if you ain’t want the truth. All love over here bro"

So ... is Bell's song actually good or bad? We're just gonna post the video below and let you decide.

In the running back battle of L.A., it's Melvin Gordon over Todd Gurley ... at least, according to Melvin Gordon.

The L.A. Chargers star is feelin' himself after a pretty solid 2018 season -- he only played in 12 games due to injury, but still managed to rack up 885 rushing yards and 10 rushing TDs.

Not bad!!!

Gordon's a cool guy -- and even when he was braggin' about himself, he still showed respect for Gurley, who's getting ready to play in the Super Bowl.

L.A. Chargers defensive lineman Brandon Mebane rejoined his team Wednesday after taking time off to be with his hospital-stricken infant daughter, who passed away last week.

While still in the womb back in July, Mebane's daughter, Makenna, was diagnosed with a heart defect as a result of a chromosomal condition called trisomy 13.

The family moved to Omaha, Nebraska where Mebane's wife, Amena, and unborn child could be treated by doctors who specialized in the condition.

Makenna was born more than 1 month premature in November and later developed an intestinal infection known as Necrotizing Enterocolitis (also known as NEC) -- a fast-striking, devastating condition that can be fatal if not caught and treated immediately.

Doctors treated Makenna for weeks -- and Mebane used the team owner's private jet to travel to the last 2 regular season games when Makenna's health seemed to be stabilizing.

But unfortunately, her health took a turn for the worse earlier this month and she passed away on January 3.

Obviously, Mebane is devastated -- but says he plans to play in the Chargers' playoff game against the New England Patriots this weekend.

Melvin Gordon went head to head with his Uber driver over who's going to win Sunday's Wild Card matchup between his Chargers and the Baltimore Ravens ... and the guy didn't have a clue who he was talking to!

The video's hilarious -- the Chargers stud RB playfully goads his friendly driver to make predictions on the game and ends up getting some spicy trash talk out of him ... especially about Philip Rivers.

After praising Ravens QB Lamar Jackson and basically telling Gordon the Chargers QB sucks, he adds ... "I'm going to pull for Phil Rivers to get up off the ground because they gonna put him on the ground."

The driver also feels confident in Baltimore because they've been playing more as a team now that Flacco's on the sidelines, but clearly ... he doesn't have much info on that Melvin Gordon guy.

Even funnier ... despite making it clear he's pulling for the Ravens, the driver eventually admits he's from Texas, but he's "got to talk that crazy talk" since he's picking up Baltimore residents.

Antonio Gates ain't sure he wants to hang up his cleats after this season ... 'cause the Chargers legend tells TMZ Sports he's having way too much fun to quit football!!!

A.G.'s 38 years old and it's clear he's WAY past his prime ... but when we got the tight end out in Bev Hills -- he says he's not ruling out playing another season in 2019.

"I'm having a lot of fun now. More fun than I had in my whole career to be honest with you."

It's interesting ... considering Gates has just 28 catches and 2 touchdowns this season -- but the Chargers are 11-4 and do still have a shot at the AFC's No. 1 seed.

Sounds like all that winning has Gates -- who nearly retired before THIS season -- thinking about playing another year with Philip Rivers -- even if he ain't ballin' like he used to.

"Right now, I'm just enjoying the moment, man. We in the postseason, we got a chance to the playoffs and win the championship. And, after that, I'll just see how it goes."

If Melvin Gordon cost ya money last night ... the L.A. Chargers running back says he's truly sorry.

"To my fantasy owners ... who lost without my help I’m sorry," M.G. wrote on social media.

Gordon was a monster this year -- averaging 25.15 fantasy points per game -- but a knee injury sidelined him while many needed him the most in fantasy playoffs Thursday night.

Of course, the NFL superstar was probably the reason you were IN the fantasy playoffs in the first place ... but he's still apologizing nonetheless.

"Crunch time in these playoffs and I couldn’t come thru !!"

But hey, it coulda been worse ... at least fantasy owners had a heads-up a couple hours before kickoff to swap him out of the lineup.

As for his teammate, Keenan Allen ... the same can't be said -- and THAT'S the apology we're all still waiting for!!!

POLICE BEEF!!!!

The Kansas City P.D. was talking all sorts of crap about the Chargers before they took on the Chiefs Thursday night.

So, when K.C. choked away the game, the LAPD decided to rub some salt in the wound.

It all started before the big "Thursday Night Football" matchup ... when the KCPD threw shade at the Bolts for their lack of fan support in BOTH San Diego and L.A.

"While our football team doesn't have to move cities to get fans, we'd like to keep our city's traffic (both fans & commuters) moving during tomorrow's Chiefs vs Chargers game."

"Stadium full of people will be going to Arrowhead during rush hour. Plan alt. routes or extra time."

So, when Philip Rivers and company stormed into Arrowhead and silenced the 75,000 fans with a last-second, come-from-behind victory ... the LAPD decided to clap back.

"It’s ok...we’ll take the 11-3 playoff-bound @Chargers and their great win over the @Chiefs."

SHAAAAAAAAAAAADEEEEE!!

Of course ... L.A. cops weren't the only ones getting in on the K.C. trollin' -- Rivers made sure the fans at Arrowhead got some in person too!

The best news for all parties?? Both teams have clinched a playoff berth ... which means we could all get round 3 in just a few weeks.