Miami Dolphins

Kenny Stills says people have threatened to murder him after he criticized Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross for supporting Trump ... but the WR says he ain't backing down.

The 27-year-old blasted Ross -- his boss -- on Twitter earlier this week ... calling the guy a hypocrite for running a charity championing "equality" while simultaneously supporting Trump.

"You can’t have a non profit with this mission statement then open your doors to Trump,” Stills wrote.

The tweet was met with plenty of backlash ... and Stills says at least five to ten people threatened to take his life for the criticism.

But, Stills doubled down on his feelings on Ross after the Dolphins beat the Falcons in their preseason opener Thursday night nonetheless ... further explaining why he feels the need to call out the owner.

"Our country's in a rough place right now and I think we could be doing more," Stills told reporters at his locker.

"I think there’s other candidates that he could support. It’s not about Democrat or Republican or any of those things. It’s literally about why. Why are you trying to help this man raise money to continue to do things that he’s been doing?"

For his part, Ross released a statement this week defending himself, saying, "I have known Donald Trump for 40 years, and while we agree on some issues, we strongly disagree on many others and I have never been bashful about expressing my opinions."

Stills says he has yet to speak with the owner about the whole ordeal ... but says when the two do sit and chat, his message will be the same as the one he posted on Twitter.

Kendrick Norton -- bionic man!??!

The former NFL lineman -- who lost half of his left arm in a July car crash -- says doctors told him he's a prime candidate for a state-of-the art prosthetic limb ... one he can control with HIS MIND!

"I had a good case where they preserved a lot of my nerves from my arm, so I'll be able to get a prosthetic I'll be able to control with my mind."

SERIOUSLY!!!

The 22-year-old joined the guys on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (weeknights on FS1) -- and told us how he's adjusting to life after losing his arm from the elbow down.

The good news ... technology in the prosthetic limb industry is CRAZY GOOD right now and Norton says he's a top candidate for a bionic limb that will allow him to control robotic fingers as easily as he controlled his old ones.

We did some research and the science is fascinating -- there are limbs that harness signals transmitted from the brain and essentially tell a robotic hand how to function. It's amazing.

Norton still has some healing to do before he gets fitted ... but he's learning all about his options in the meantime.

"In the medical field, there's a lot of new technology out here I'm just now finding out about."

As for his future, we asked Norton if he's considering finding a new sport where he can compete with one hand ... and while he hasn't ruled it out, it's just not his priority at the moment.

Instead, Norton says he's focusing on starting a non-profit charity and wants to use his platform to inspire kids who are living without limbs.

Kendrick Norton -- the NFL player who lost most of his left arm in a horrific car crash -- wants to SHOW what life is like as an amputee ... and he's keeping it all the way real in an inspiring new video.

As we previously reported, Norton (a 7th-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft) was battling for a roster spot with the Miami Dolphins when he crashed his truck on July 4 with his girlfriend, Kira, in the vehicle.

Now, more than a month after the accident, the 22-year-old is showing his daily cleaning regimen -- and talking extremely candidly about how his life has changed.

The funniest part of the video (yes, he mixes in humor) is that he's nicknamed his left arm, "Little Kenny" ... and considers it a "mini-arm" instead of a total loss.

Kendrick says he refuses to cry about the accident and the subsequent loss of his NFL career -- explaining, "Ain't no point in crying every day and being sad and stuff. Still got stuff to be done."

The good news ... Kendrick says his other injuries (mostly road rash wounds) are healing nicely and doesn't seem to be in pain.

His girlfriend, Kira, says she suffered internal bleeding from the crash -- but insists she's doing well now.

Kendrick says some of his daily tasks take longer to perform due to his amputated arm -- and admits it's frustrating -- but his attitude is remarkably positive.

"Don't worry about me too much," Kendrick says ... noting he's going to be okay and he's not suicidal.

He even gave a message to some of his fellow amputees who are looking up to him as a role model ...

Pro Football Hall of Famer Nick Buoniconti -- who famously launched a charity to cure paralysis -- has died after a struggle with dementia. He was 78.

Buoniconti was a stud linebacker at Notre Dame who was drafted by the Boston Patriots of the AFL in 1962 ... but went on to become a superstar for the Miami Dolphins from 1969 to 1976.

During his career, Buoniconti racked up 2 Super Bowl rings, made 2 Pro Bowls and was a 6-time AFL All Star. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2001.

Buoniconti believed he suffered from CTE due to his football career and in 2017 he announced that he would donate his brain for research purposes after his death.

During an interview, Buoniconti once said of his condition, "I’m positive that football caused this ... I always loved [the game]. I still do. But I’m paying the price."

Nick famously launched The Buoniconti Fund after his son, Marc, became paralyzed during a college football game in 1985. The Fund helped launch the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, which has become one of the global leaders in neurological research.

Nick and Marc were famously featured on an episode of HBO's "Real Sports."

Nick also hosted "Inside the NFL" from 1980 until 2001.

And get this, while playing for the Patriots, Nick earned his law degree and became a sports agent who represented a bunch of MLB players ... including Andre Dawson.

Yankees legendary owner George Steinbrenner once said Nick was the toughest negotiator he ever faced.

Long story short, Nick lived a pretty amazing life and will be missed.

Miami Dolphins defensive lineman Kendrick Norton is speaking out from his hospital bed -- saying even though he lost his arm in a July 4 car crash, he feels grateful to be alive. 

"I'm alive," Norton told CBS4’s Peter D’Oench ... "If nothing else, I'm alive."

Norton's voice was shaking as he gave the interview -- his left arm severed around the elbow -- but somehow, he's found a way to stay positive. 

"I'm doing fine. I'm doing the best I can," Norton said from the Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital, with his grandparents and father by his side. 

22-year-old Norton -- a 7th-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft -- says the reality is sinking in that he'll never play football again, but he's trying to figure out another purpose in life. 

"It's not realistic that I'm going to play football anymore. We're working past that."

"We're going to be doing a blood drive," Norton said ... noting that he's looking for ways to help and inspire others going through a similar experience. 

The late H. Wayne Huizenga's incredible Florida mansion has a new owner ... and the lucky buyer got it for a bargain -- $16.02 MILLION!!!

Huizenga -- who was worth more than $ 2.8 BILLION -- died in March 2018 at the age of 80. Besides owning the Miami Dolphins, Marlins and Florida Panthers, he also founded Blockbuster Video and Waste Management. Dude was RICH!!!

During his life, Huizenga bought up this amazing 20,653-square foot waterfront pad in Fort Lauderdale ... which boasts 10-bedrooms, a home gym, workshop, theater, billiards room and a kitchen with a pizza oven.

Oh, and there's also enough dock space to park your 135-ft mega-yacht ... right near the infinity pool which contains its own BELLTOWER!!!

Huizinga's estate previously listed the place for $27 million ... but they were clearly motivated to sell, and later put it up for auction where it sold on June 5th for a cool $16 MIL.

So, who's the highest bidder? Turns out the new owner is Charles E. West, Jr. -- the founder of Pet Supermarket.

"What better place for a Jewish quarterback to be than in Miami!?"

That was Jay Fiedler's reaction to the Miami Dolphins bringing on Josh Rosen -- and Feidler would know, he's Jewish too!!!

In fact, Fiedler -- a 2002 inductee to the National Jewish Sports Hall of Fame -- was the last Miami Dolphins QB to lead the team to a playoff victory back in 2000.

So, with Rosen now in South Beach ... we hit up Fiedler to see if he had advice for his Hebrew brethren.

"The Jewish community down there will love him," Fiedler says ... "And, he'll probably get invited to quite a few Bar Mitzvahs along the way!!!"

In all seriousness, Fiedler thinks Rosen is a great addition to the Fins -- and says having a respected veteran like Ryan Fitzpatrick in the QB room will be HUGE for the young guy from UCLA.

Fiedler also dishes out some advice for Rosen ... and Josh should listen.

By the way, the Dolphins last playoff win was in 2000 ... when Fiedler led his squad over Peyton Manning's Indianapolis Colts in the wild card round!!!

Since then, the Dolphins were QB'd by guys like Daunte Culpepper, Trent Green, Chad Pennington, Chad Henne, Ryan Tannehill and Jay Cutler.

But, none of those guys were able to put a W on the books in playoff time.

Marco Rubio is PUMPED Miami traded for Josh Rosen ... telling TMZ Sports the former Arizona Cardinal is now the best QB the Dolphins have had in TWO DECADES!!!

"He's the most talented passer we've had on the roster since Marino," the Florida Senator says.

Miami unloaded its second-round pick in last week's NFL draft to get JR from Arizona ... and Rubio is ALL FOR IT -- telling us it's basically a win-win for his favorite football team.

And why? Rubio says because Rosen came with such a team-friendly contract ... there's no risk at all for his squad.

"If it works out, great!" Rubio says ... "If it doesn't, we'll have to draft someone next year."

It's been a rough start for Josh's NFL career ... dude completed just 55 percent of his passes and threw just 11 touchdowns to 14 interceptions last season.

Josh Rosen got major love from Cardinals fans one last time before heading off to Miami ... getting a standing ovation at Larry Fitzgerald's celeb softball game just hours after getting traded.

Rosen was traded to the Dolphins on Friday after the Cardinals took Kyler Murray with the top pick in the draft ... but that didn't stop him from supporting his now ex-teammate at his charity home run derby the next night.

Not only did Rosen get a positive send-off from Cards fans, he gave them a show too -- winning the home run derby AND the MVP award from the softball game.

“I just want to say thank you to everybody,” Rosen said at the event. “We didn’t win as many games as I would have hoped, but I had a great time and an unbelievable year."

Danny Amendola is throwing some serious shade at Olivia Culpo's new fling, Zedd, with an assist from his rock hard abs and a famous Bruce Willis line from "Pulp Fiction."

As we first told you ... Olivia and Zedd got very flirty with each other during the first weekend of Coachella, getting super snuggly during some music sets and putting Danny firmly in the rearview.

Well, Danny just responded to his ex-girlfriend's new relationship ... posting a shirtless video on Instagram Thursday night and making sure to capture Bruce's famous line from the Quentin Tarantino flick, which is totally relevant to Olivia's new boo.

The NFL wide receiver is sending a loud and clear message to the former Miss Universe ... enjoy Zedd all you want, but the DJ ain't got nothing on these abs, baby!!!

Danny and Olivia have been dating on and off since 2016, but their relationship's been ice cold since he shipped out of Miami and joined the Detroit Lions in early March.

Olivia Culpo is back in her natural habitat on Miami Beach, but this time she's hittin' the sand without her on-again-off-again beau, Danny Amendola -- which you couldn't care less about right now.

The former Miss Universe made Thursday a sun day with some gal pals -- including model Devon Windsor -- but she stole the show with her red two-piece bikini. Olivia definitely seemed aware of the cameras too, since she got in tons of different positions ... as if she were doing an impromptu photo shoot.

It's interesting that Olivia's back in Miami without Danny, with whom she's been hot and cold since this past fall. He's no longer a Dolphin -- dude got shipped out to the Detroit Lions earlier this month. Bummer for him ... that's a lot less beach time with Olivia.

40-year-old Drew Brees will be playing in the NFL for AT LEAST two more years ... so says Jonathan Vilma, his ex-Saints teammate.

"I think that Drew has, in my objective opinion, about another 2-3 years left."

Of course, Drew's future is back in the news 'cause Teddy Bridgewater just turned down the Dolphins' starting QB job to return to New Orleans to be Brees' backup.

Most figured it's 'cause Drew's days in the league are numbered and he needs a successor ... but Vilma -- who played with Brees for 6 seasons in New Orleans -- tells us Teddy could be waiting a while for that.

"If you ask Drew, he's got like another 10 or 15 years left!"

But, that doesn't mean Vilma hates Bridgewater's choice to stay ... in fact, the former linebacker tells us he thinks Teddy "made a smart long-term decision."

As for Bridgewater, he told reporters after re-upping with the Saints last week that, "I’m still 26 years old. The way I look at it is that I’ll have another opportunity to start in this league at some point."

Wanna ball out like a Florida billionaire?? The late Wayne Huizenga's incredibly massive Fort Lauderdale mansion is hitting the auction block ... and it's going to the highest bidder!!!

The former Dolphins, Marlins and Panthers owner -- who died last year -- owned the 20,653-square-ft estate on the riverfront ... and it was previously listed at a whoppin' $27 million.

The 10-room pad is sick ... complete with a personal gym, workshop, theater (after all, dude co-founded Blockbuster), billiards room and a kitchen with a pizza oven.

The whole property has five different buildings ... and there are multiple safe rooms throughout the place.

If that ain't enough ... there's enough water room to store a 135-ft megayacht.

The auction kicks off next month through Concierge Auctions and will sell without reserve.

2:00 PM PT --Steiner Sports now tells us the consignor agreed to wave the reserve ... meaning the ball has sold for over $18K.

10:10 AM PT -- Steiner Sports tells us bidding for the "Miami Miracle" ball hit $18K ... but failed to reach the $20,000 reserve price -- so the sale didn't go through.

The football used to sink the New England Patriots in the "Miami Miracle" game earlier this season just sold for $18k at auction ... TMZ Sports has learned.

The pigskin Kenyan Drake famously ran in with no time left on the clock in a Week 14 stunning win over the Pats received plenty of attention -- earning 23 total bids during the Steiner Sports auction.

But ... we're told Kenyan -- who openly pled for fans to give him the game-winning football in a trade for some Dolphins gear and tickets -- wasn't one of the bidders.

Still, the ball could be a great investment for whoever ultimately won it ... it could be one of the only blemishes on what might end up being Tom Brady's last Super Bowl run (then again, who knows with this guy).

Probably worth a little more than some gloves, a jersey and tix -- right, Kenyan??

Olivia Culpo and Danny Amendola may have forgotten old acquaintances -- at least one of them -- because it looks like they're back together.

Danny and Olivia each posted identical videos of fireworks to their IG stories ... videos obviously shot on New Year's Eve.

The videos were shot at a beach location, and the fact he plays for the Dolphins may be a geographical clue.

Olivia and Danny broke up a few months ago after he hit the beach with a super hot woman. After the pic surfaced, Olivia proclaimed she was keeping the $12,000 Rolex she bought for Danny's birthday.

If this is real, it will be the third time Danny and Olivia got together. They met in 2016, dated for 2 years, broke up, got back together last year but the woman in the bikini buzz killed that one. But, old flame don't douse easily.

The Dolphins had one of the most EPIC walk off winning touchdowns in NFL history ... and Miami guard Ted Larsen laid out the block that made the TD possible.

But, how could the play have been even better?

WITH A FAT GUY TOUCHDOWN!!!

At least, that's what Larsen's saying ... 'cause the Dolphins OL tells TMZ Sports that while Kenyan Drake's play was amazing -- he says it coulda been even better if he got the rock.

"Obviously we scored and we won -- I would have selfishly liked if they had pitched me the ball or something like that!"

Larsen, sadly, didn't get the ball in the epic play ... but he DID throw the key block that sprung Drake for the final yards of the game-winner.

As for if he DID happen to get the ball ... Larsen says nobody else was gonna touch it, 'cause, "I was going to try to take it right to the end zone myself!"

And, when it comes to the celebration -- Larsen says he woulda done the exact same thing that Drake did!!!!

Which, as it turns out, Kenyan is REALLY regretting today ...