NFL

Gronk gets bouquet of roses ... Gronk SPIKE BOUQUET OF ROSES!!!!!!

New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski brought the party train out west Monday night ... hitting up the Hollywood nightclub scene with some pals -- and, of course, things got crazy.

TMZ Sports shot footage of Gronk leaving DBA nightclub -- with a giant rip in the back of his pants -- when he was approached by the infamous "rose lady."

What happened next was legendary ...

Gronk got into town earlier in the day and was kicking it by his hotel pool in the sunny 77 degree weather.

#jealous?

LeBron James and Blake Griffin should consider themselves lucky ... 'cause Bears TE Martellus Bennett tells TMZ Sports he could be PUNISHING the NBA if he'd chosen the roundball life.

Bennett was showing his skills at the Gridiron Celebrity Hoops charity game in Phoenix this past weekend ... absolutely bruising other stars like Romeo Miller and fellow NFL'er Dez Bryant.

But when we asked Bennett -- who was an All State hoops player in high school -- if things would be different against the best in the world he seemed oddly ... confident.

A lot more confident than Pete Carroll was in Marshawn Lynch. #NeverLettingItGo.

It wasn't just about pride, Chris Evans' big superhero Super Bowl bet with Chris Pratt helped raise more than $11k for Evans' charity ... TMZ Sports has learmed.

You already know the bet ... Star-Lord and Captain America agreed to visit the other actor's charity IN COSTUME if their team lost the big game.

In the end, both stars decided to visit both charities ... but Evans' organization, Christopher's Haven, tells us they got an unexpected boost from fans looking to pitch in as well.

Joyce Duvall, executive director of Christopher's Haven -- which helps provide housing for families with children fighting pediatric cancer -- tells us the org. received just over $11k from fans.

"The coolest thing about something like this is that all the kids win ... no matter what happened in the football game," Duvall says.

Actually, the coolest thing might be when the actors show up IN COSTUME ... but yeah, the fundraising's cool too.

Mark Wahlberg celebrated the Super Bowl in the most awesome way with a fellow Patriots fan and even gave him the shirt ... almost off his back! It was a tremendous day for Bostonians -- but a not-so-great one for “The Ruiner."

Yep, he struck again ... on the biggest stage possible.

Talk about kicking a man when he's down -- ex-NFL star Jeremy Shockey just threw some major salt in Warren Sapp's wound ... three years after Sapp called Shockey a "snitch" on TV.

Here's the backstory ... back in 2012, Sapp went on the NFL Network and said he had a "source" that told him Shockey was the "snitch" who ratted out the New Orleans Saints Bountygate scandal to the NFL.

Shockey denied the allegations -- and was furious that Sapp made the allegation.

Clearly, he's been holding a grudge and moments ago went on social media and posted the following note:

"Just heard from my SOURCE Warren Sapp charged with soliciting a prostitute! Damn so sad."

Yeah, clearly he's upset about it.

Malcolm Butler isn't just a Super Bowl hero, he's also one helluva success story -- so says his former college coach who tells TMZ Sports he couldn't be more proud of the guy.

We spoke with University of West Alabama head coach Brett Gilliland who says he was watching the game with the entire coaching staff when Malcolm made the game-winning interception.

"As soon as he made his break on the interception, we started to scream. We went crazy. It was chaotic!"

But last night wasn't the first time Malcolm overcame the odds, according to Coach Gilliland.

"Malcolm's got a great story. He was dealt some bad hands in life. There was a time when he wasn't on the right path. He got his life back on track ... then last night happened."

If you didn't know, Malcolm was kicked off his community college football team before he went to UWA ... and took a job at Popeye's to make ends meet.

But he was a "perfect angel" at UWA, coach says ... and he's happy the Patriots decided to take a chance on him as an undrafted free agent.

"He just needed a shot, and the Pats were the only team that'd give him it. Credit to them. They believed in him, and he repaid them."

Coach says he hasn't spoken with Malcolm yet ... but has a message for the guy:

Johnny Manziel has checked into a treatment center ... this according to multiple members of Manziel's camp.

A rep for the Cleveland Browns issued a statement saying, "Brad Beckworth, friend and advisor to Manziel and his family, has confirmed that Johnny entered treatment on Wednesday."

"Johnny knows there are areas in which he needs to improve in order to be a better family member, friend and teammate and he thought the off-season was the right time to take this step."

"On behalf of Johnny and his family, we’re asking for..privacy until he rejoins the team in Cleveland."

The Browns did not say exactly why Manziel is being treated -- but it seems pretty obvious ... considering his penchant for partying.

Earlier this season, ESPN's Skip Bayless said he'd spoken with several people close to the Browns QB and was convinced Johnny is an alcoholic.

Johnny responded to the criticism by hitting the bar scene -- and after the season, was seen chugging champagne at a hotel pool.

Tom Brady:
4-time Super Bowl Champion
3-time Super Bowl MVP
6-time AFC champion
10-time Pro Bowler

Peyton Manning:
1-time Super Bowl Champ
1-time Super Bowl MVP
3-time AFC champion
14-time Pro Bowler

But despite the numbers, and the rings, Denver Broncos linebacker Von Miller tells TMZ Sports he still believes Peyton Manning is BETTER than Tom Brady.

"Peyton's my guy," Miller told us after the Super Bowl ... "I'm riding with Peyton."

This video is great!!!

New England Patriots mega-fan Mark Wahlberg celebrating in the parking lot with fans ... and then giving his own Pats hat to a young fan who asked for a selfie.

You gotta see the clip ... all the kid asked for was a pic, but Mark went the extra mile ... and the crowd loved it.

It was a big night for Mark, who also debuted a new "Ted 2" trailer during the game ... featuring a scene in which MW and Ted try to steal Tom Brady's baby batter.

#PerfectSpiral

To the victor, goes the V.I.P. golf cart ride through the parking lot for his wife.

Moments after Tom Brady and the New England Patriots stopped the worst-called play in NFL history and beat the Seattle Seahawks, Gisele took a victory lap in the parking lot on her own private cart.

TMZ Sports captured the moment ... and you can clearly see GB's fired up -- telling friends she'd see them at the victory party.

Pete Carroll did not get a golf cart ride around the stadium.

Ex-NFL star Titus Young is suffering from a traumatic brain injury caused by repeated blows to the head ... which contributed to his alleged violent behavior ... so say the specialists treating Young at a mental health facility in San Diego.

As we previously reported, the 25-year-old former Detroit Lions receiver was arrested last year after allegedly attacking people in 5 separate incidents ... and was locked up in a L.A. County jail.

Now, we've learned Young recently bonded out and has been receiving treatment at the Crosby Center in S.D. -- where specialists believe Young's issues come from the hits he took playing football.

TMZ Sports spoke with Pete Daniels, intake coordinator at the Center, who tells us Young was admitted to the facility last weekend and has been working with a team of specialists and doctors non-stop.

Despite the short stay, Daniels says the doctors say Young's symptoms include hypervigilance, mood swings, emotional instability and more.

"All of the these are results of Young taking hits to the head for long periods of time," Daniels says ... "without a doubt."

Daniels says Young has been responding positively to the treatment -- he's feeling better and more in control of his life.

Young -- who's still facing criminal charges for the alleged assaults -- is expected to remain at the center for least 6 more weeks. Daniels says he hopes the judge will allow him to continue treatment instead of putting him back behind bars.

The Super Bowl ain't just about the matchup on the field, you should probably pay attention to the sidelines too!

It's the She-hawks VS. the Patri-ettes in a battle for the hottest cheerleaders at Super Bowl XLIX.

Check out the gallery and vote for you faves!!!

Chicago Bears fans can take a deep breath, 'cause Brandon Marshall's punctured lung is doing MUCH better ... so say his doctors who allowed the WR to begin flying again ... TMZ Sports has learned.

We broke the story ... Marshall had to miss a court-ordered deposition last month stemming from a case in which he's accused of attacking a woman outside of a NYC nightclub in 2012.

Marshall claimed doctors told him it was unsafe to fly since he had just suffered a punctured lung from a hit he took during a Thursday Night Football game.

But everything's been healing well ... and earlier this month, Marshall told the court he's been cleared for takeoff ... and was willing and able to attend a makeup depo on January 30th.

Sources tell us Marshall made his appointment and sat for a deposition without a hitch ... or a breathing issue.

Pharrell Williams has officially passed the wide brim hat torch to a guy who torches defenses ... Steelers star Antonio Brown tells TMZ Sports his fashion forward lid set him back over $600!

Brown is with the rest of the sports world at the Super Bowl in Arizona so when our camera guy ran into the always dapper Pro Bowler we had to ask ... dude, what's with the hat?

That's when Brown swagged us out a little bit, telling us that his fancy lid wasn't any regular dome-shielder ... this one put a $600 dent in his $42 million pockets.

One more thing ... we're not fashion experts ... and far be it for us to question a man's right to expression, but ...

Matt Damon says Tom Brady is deadlier WITH a fully-inflated football -- and says if he woulda had a pumped up pigskin from the start of the AFC Championship, the Pats woulda hung 200 on Indy!!!

Damon was running around L.A. Friday -- proudly sporting his Patriots hat -- when he told the photogs Deflate-Gate is just a distraction from Brady's real DOMINANCE.

"Didn't you see when he got his real footballs back and he got 4 straight touchdowns ... I'm telling you we woulda won that game 200-0 if he had his regular footballs the whole time."

We'll see on Sunday.