NFL

New hair ... don't care?!?

Seems Ezekiel Elliott is living by that mantra ... 'cause he's back in Cabo holding out from Cowboys camp with a fresh, new hairdo after Jerry Jones jokingly burned him earlier this week.

Of course, 24-year-old Zeke's been missing from Dallas practices all month, wanting a new deal ... and after his backup, Tony Pollard, killed it against the Rams on Saturday -- Jerry said, "Zeke who?!"

It was meant to be funny ... but Zeke wasn't laughing -- his agent told ESPN the comment was "disrespectful."

Now, Zeke's back in Cabo after briefly returning to Texas ... and he's sporting some new dreads while doing it!!!

Unclear if the haircut is a message (unlikely) ... but we do know one thing -- Zeke is serious about this holdout, and it seems he really might not play week 1 for the 'Boys.

But, hey, that haircut though ... #swaaaaaaaaaag!!!

Zeke is supposed to enter his 4th season in the NFL after being drafted by the Cowboys with the 4th pick of the 2016 NFL Draft.

Zeke is still under his rookie deal -- which is only slated to pay him $3.85 million in 2019.

Elliott is looking to be the highest-paid RB in the NFL -- and with Todd Gurley signing a 4-year, $57.5 million contract extension in 2018 ... he clearly wants Jerry Jones to open up that wallet!!!

A fish head left in the freezer is the reason Antonio Brown is allegedly stiffing a guy out of $38,000 ... so says the celeb chef who put it in there.

The story is wild ...

Stefano Tedeschi -- who filed a lawsuit against AB just last month -- tells TMZ Sports after cooking for the NFL superstar at the Pro Bowl in 2018, he left a salmon head in the freezer with the intentions of making some soup the next day.

The problem? Apparently, AB and his crew thought it was a threat -- and straight-up kicked him out of their mansion!!!

"The salmon head I thought was a joke," Tedeschi says ... "But, apparently, it was real."

Tedeschi says he had agreed to cook for Brown and all of his friends for 3 days in Florida during Pro Bowl weekend last year.

He says the first day went off swimmingly ... he cooked breakfast and lunch for Antonio and his guys -- and then came back later in the evening to do a big cooking show dinner.

Part of that meal included filleting a salmon -- one Tedeschi had bought with his son earlier in the day. But, when Tedeschi stored the head of the fish in the freezer after the show ... that's when he says all the trouble began.

"Apparently they misunderstood the fish head," Stefano said.

"I said, 'Who could have possibly misunderstood a fish head in the freezer? Tell me, what person with intelligence could have misplaced a fish head for some mob, horse head?!'"

Stefano says when he came back to cook the next day, he was booted from the property and wasn't allowed to retrieve any of his cooking gear that he had left on the premises.

Antonio also didn't allow him to cook the following day ... and, according to Stefano, the receiver never paid him a dime for the weekend.

As we previously reported, Stefano is now suing Brown for $38,521.20 for the weekend, and he tells us all signs are pointing toward an ugly legal battle in court to get the cash.

"AB's team is acting like we're going to go to court ... he's going to drag this thing out, he's got more money than me, blah, blah, blah."

We reached out to Brown's attorney, Darren Heitner, for comment on the fish head story ... and Heitner tells us, "There is no comment on the 'fish head' claim nor any other claim the plaintiff wants to make with the media."

Baker Mayfield simply can't believe the NY Giants selected Daniel Jones with the 6th overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft ... saying the move "blows my mind."

Mayfield made the comments while doing an interview with GQ -- the reporter says they happened to be sitting by a TV when ESPN ran a segment on Jones, the rookie out of Duke.

That's when Mayfield said, "I cannot believe the Giants took Daniel Jones ... blows my mind."

Some people are interpreting the comments as a shot at Jones -- others say Baker was just vocalizing how EVERYONE felt about the pick ... considering so many draft experts had other QBs like Dwayne Haskins ranked higher than DJ.

If you're wondering, the Browns do NOT play the Giants during the regular season this year.

The GQ reporter continued the conversation about NFL quarterbacks -- noting that a ton of so-called "experts" never seem to accurately predict which college stars will make good pros.

Baker added, "Some people overthink it ... that's where people go wrong. They forget you've gotta win."

He continued to explain what makes a great QB -- "Either you have a history of winning and being that guy for your team ... or you don't."

So far, no comment from Jones.

Colin Kaepernick says the 2015 shooting death of Mario Woods -- a black man who was shot multiple times by police officers -- is what compelled him to become a civil rights activist.

Colin told his story to Paper Magazine ... saying he was deeply affected by the incident, in which 26-year-old Woods was shot 21 times by 5 San Francisco PD officers during a Dec. 2, 2015 incident.

Cops confronted Woods -- who was holding a knife -- after receiving reports about a nearby stabbing.

Officers initially used non-lethal bean bag rounds on Woods while ordering him to drop the knife -- but then opened fire with live ammo when they claimed he became aggressive and was a threat.

But, cellphone footage posted after the incident appeared to contradict the police description -- showing Woods up against a wall while holding the knife at his side in a non-threatening manner.

A death investigation revealed Woods was shot 21 times -- 6 of those bullets struck him in the back.

The incident outraged citizens who accused the SFPD of executing Woods unjustly ... and according to Kap's girlfriend, Nessa, the QB began feeding his brain immediately after.

"If Colin wasn't reviewing a playbook, he was reading a history book," Nessa told Paper.

Kap took a knee in August 2016 -- 8 months after Woods' death -- and began his Know Your Rights Camp initiative that same year, using the Black Panther movement as inspiration.

Colin's KYRC has been thriving since their inception ... touching cities all around the country, and employing volunteers like Ava DuVernay, Taraji P. Henson and fellow NFL player Eric Reid.

Kenny Stills -- a Miami Dolphins star who STILL kneels for the national anthem -- is clearly upset with Jay-Z for comments he made after teaming up with the NFL, ripping the guy in the team's locker room Monday.

Stills says Jay came off as "uninformed" when he told members of the media last week that "we've moved past kneeling" and on to "actionable items."

"He's not an NFL player," Stills said. "He's never been on a knee."

Kenny says he's frustrated that Jay-Z made it seem like he was speaking "for the people like he had spoken to the people" ... and says Jay NEVER reached out to him or Colin Kaepernick before signing on to Roger Goodell's team.

"I wonder how many common people that he knows or that he's spoken to," Stills said. "I wonder if he's read my Facebook comments or my Instagram comments. Or some of the things that people say to me."

"To be able to speak on it and say that we're moving past something, it didn't seem very informed."

Stills' comments come on the heels of Kaepernick seemingly taking a jab at Jay-Z over the weekend, when Colin wrote on social media, "My Brothers @e_reid35 @kstills @ithinkisee12 continue to fight for the people, even in the face of death threats."

Miami Dolphins RB Mark Walton just cut a sweet plea deal with prosecutors ... his gun, drugs and battery cases are all now closed -- and the dude won't have to spend a second more behind bars for any of his alleged crimes.

Walton was arrested three separate times in the past year -- once for marijuana possession, once for an alleged battery and the third for leading cops on a wild police chase.

TMZ Sports obtained footage of the third arrest ... and you can see in the video, Walton in BIG trouble with officers -- getting tased and still managing to flea the scene.

In total, Walton was facing six charges for the three arrests ... including a felony gun charge. He was facing YEARS in prison if convicted.

But, we spoke with Walton's attorney, Michael Gottlieb, on Monday ... and he tells us Walton reached a deal with prosecutors in court to close everything out.

Gottlieb says in exchange for pleading no contest to a misdemeanor gun charge ... Walton had every other one of his charges dismissed.

His punishment, per Gottlieb, was six months of non-reporting probation. Gottlieb also says Walton will have to complete a driving course.

It's great news for the 22-year-old ... the tailback just signed a deal with the Dolphins this offseason, and is fighting like hell to make the team's roster.

Walton was a Cincinnati Bengals fourth-round pick back in 2018 ... but he was cut by the team after his third arrest in April.

Moments after Cedric Benson crashed his motorcycle into a minivan Saturday, several bystanders slammed on their brakes and raced to the scene to try to save the ex-NFL star's life, new video shows.

The raw footage is graphic so we're not publishing it -- instead, we've cut screen grabs showing the efforts to save Cedric and his female passenger ... with one person even using a fire extinguisher to put out flames on the former running back.

As we previously reported, Benson and his passenger were riding a BMW motorcycle on a popular highway in Austin, Texas at around 10:20 p.m. when he collided with a white minivan.

In new footage obtained by TMZ Sports, you can see at least 6 cars have pulled over near the crash and a handful of people raced over to Cedric to help out.

The video shows Cedric's burning motorcycle propped against the driver's side door of the mini van, which is fully engulfed in flames. Cedric and his passenger are down on the road nearby.

The person who shot the video notes that no emergency personnel had arrived when the video was being shot -- you don't see any flashing lights.

One good Samaritan grabbed a fire extinguisher and tended to Benson, who appeared to be smoldering from the wreck.

Fire and rescue arrived a short time later -- but it was too late. Benson and his passenger were pronounced dead on the scene by law enforcement officials. No cause of death has been officially released.

36-year-old Benson had sadly posted a picture of his bike on Instagram just hours the before the crash, saying, "My Saturday evening."

We've reached out to the Austin Police Department for comment on the new footage ... and they say they'll have more details on the accident later Monday.

Rapper Vic Mensa believes Jay-Z is still looking out for Colin Kaepernick -- and will make sure the QB gets HIRED when Hov becomes an NFL owner.

"I would be surprised if Kaepernick doesn't get a job with Hov being in the NFL," Mensa told us on the way out of The Nice Guy in West Hollywood.

"We know the NFL is a slave game, so to have a black man in there ... especially a black man with a socially conscious responsibility, cause i know that's how Hov feels, man ... I believe that Kap gonna get that job and I believe that Hov's intentions are in the right place."

TMZ Sports broke the story ... Jay-Z will have a "significant ownership interest" in an NFL team -- a plan that will all come together in the "very near future."

Some people have been attacking Jay -- claiming he's betraying Colin Kaepernick and sold out the black community to work with the NFL.

In fact, Kap's good friend, Eric Reid, has been extremely critical of Jay -- calling the ownership move "despicable" and accusing Jay of putting money over the community.

Mensa tells us he still has tremendous respect for Kaepernick and the work he's done -- but says the community should get behind Jay buying an NFL team because ultimately it's a good thing for black people.

Mensa says "sh*t's gotta change" in the NFL ... and Jay's the guy to make it happen.

We also talked to Irv Gotti in NYC ... who is clearly apprehensive about the partnership, but willing to wait and watch what Jay has planned.

"It looks awkward, and I'm gonna give Hov the benefit of the doubt, and hopefully we'll see where Hov is taking it," Gotti says.

"But on first glace, him and Roger sitting there, and Roger not saying nothing, and Jay is doing all of the talking ..."

Jay-Z hasn't had a ton of famous faces come to his corner in the wake of his controversial NFL partnership -- but he just got a key vote of confidence ... from one DJ Khaled.

We ran into Khaled Sunday in NYC, where he was signing autographs and posing with fans -- and when we asked if he was up for some questions ... he was quick to note that he only wanted to talk about positive things, seeing how his son, Asahd, and wife were there.

Seems DJK knew were this was going, because our photog asks if he's down to talk football -- clearly, we want his take on the Colin Kaepernick beef. At first, Khaled says no, but he finally bites ... and we ask if he's talked to Jay's about which NFL team he might wanna own.

Khaled says he doesn't have a clue which squad might be in the stars for Jay, but he sings his praises here with us. Check it out ... it's pretty interesting.

TMZ broke the story ... Jay-Z is set to come up on a "significant ownership interest" in an NFL team pretty soon here, which just so happens to coincide with this newfound embrace of the league ... despite public stances he took against them earlier this year.

As we've reported ... a ton of people in Kap's corner have blasted Jigga for the seemingly change of heart, and even Colin himself appeared to take a jab at the rapper just this weekend.

That said, Khaled's clearly on team Jay, telling us the guy has done and continues to do a lot for people in his community -- and he suggests this NFL news is just more of that from Hov. Keep in mind, Khaled and Jay are tight -- they've done tons of music together.

Jay-Z may think folks are ready to move on from Colin Kaepernick's kneeling protest -- but Kap says otherwise ... shouting out players who continue his movement to this day.

The former 49ers quarterback posted a photo Sunday that appeared to be taking a swipe at something Jay said last week during his press conference with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell -- when he suggested "we've moved past kneeling" to "actionable items."

Doesn't seem Colin sees it that way, though. In his IG post, he included pics of Eric Reid, Kenny Stills and Albert Wilson -- all of whom have continued to kneel in the years since Kap first started his racial injustice protest -- and shared some kind words about them.

He also used similar verbiage to Jay's in making his point, writing ... "My Brothers @e_reid35 @kstills @ithinkisee12 continue to fight for the people, even in the face of death threats. They have never moved past the people and continue to put their beliefs into action. Stay strong Brothers!!"

ICYMI ... Jay was asked about kneeling directly during the Q&A, and said flat-out ... we're past it, and ready to take the next steps. He believes partnering with the NFL is a key way to do that -- but Colin and co. have been blasting him these past few days as a sell-out.

Now, it looks like Colin himself has weighed in on the controversy, and it's clear he ain't cool with Jay's new alliance ... and sees the issue much differently than Jigga does.

Ex-NFL running back Cedric Benson -- the #4 overall pick in the 2005 NFL Draft -- was killed in a motorcycle crash in Austin, Texas late Saturday night. He was only 36.

Benson -- who was a superstar at the University of Texas from 2001 to 2004 -- was reportedly driving his bike with a passenger when they got into an accident with another vehicle around 10 PM.

The passenger -- who has not yet been identified -- was also killed in the wreck. Two other adults were injured. Officials are investigating the accident. Unclear what specifically caused the crash.

Hours before the crash, Benson posted a photo of his motorcycle on social media with the caption, "My Saturday evening."

Benson was an incredible athlete -- he racked up more than 5,500 yards at Texas and won the Doak Walker Award (top running back in the country) his senior year.

He signed a rookie deal with the Bears -- 5 years, $35 mil -- and was a key part of Chicago's 2006 NFC Championship team.

Benson later played for the Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers before retiring in 2012.

Benson had several off the field problems after his career -- he was arrested for drunk driving in 2017 and 2018.

Ezekiel Elliott says the security guard he pushed in a Las Vegas altercation demanded $500,000 in an attempt to extort him ... this according to police docs obtained by TMZ Sports.

The Dallas Cowboys star's attorneys say they were emailed a complete list of demands from 19-year-old Kyle Johnson and his father, Kelly Johnson, after Zeke shoved Kyle at the Electric Daisy Carnival last May.

Police docs show Kelly emailed Zeke's attorneys just days after the altercation with AT LEAST 14 things he wanted from the running back to stay quiet on the incident ... including $500,000 cash.

The list of demands featured a public apology from Elliott, a press conference with Elliott and Kyle, $25,000 for the junior college football team Kyle played for, and signed jerseys from Zeke, Amari Cooper and Dak Prescott.

The demands list also included -- among several other things -- tickets to Cowboys games (both home and road), Ohio State games and a meet and greet with Jerry Jones and his son.

Police docs show one of Elliott's attorneys responded to Kelly's email with a phone call ... and Kelly claims in that conversation the attorney told him "what [he] was doing was extortion."

According to the docs, Kelly said after that conversation he decided to take Kyle's story to the public ... allowing Kyle to do an interview with a Los Angeles TV station on May 28.

Kelly and Kyle eventually filed a criminal complaint against Elliott over the incident ... but according to the docs, prosecutors felt they could not move forward with charges against 24-year-old Elliott.

There's more ... in the docs, Kyle admits Elliott not only apologized to him after shoving him during the May incident, he gave him a hug and took a picture with him.

In an affidavit from Elliott in the docs, he echoes that story, saying, "I had no intention to push and/or harm or intimidate Kyle Johnson."

"After Kyle Johnson fell and I was finished speaking with the officers nearby, I immediately apologized to Kyle and he indicated to me that he was not hurt."

Elliott added, "We gave each other a hug and he asked me to take a picture with him, which I was happy to do as there was never any intention to harm or hurt Kyle."

We've reached out to Kelly regarding the docs, but so far, no word back yet.

As for Zeke's camp, when reached by phone Friday, they declined to comment on the matter.

Elliott is currently holding out from Cowboys camp seeking a new contract. His team kicks off the season on Sept. 8 against the New York Giants.

Ezekiel Elliott will NOT face criminal charges over his Las Vegas altercation with a security guard, TMZ Sports has learned.

According to police documents ... the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department met with prosecutors late last month -- and after reviewing all of the evidence in the case, prosecutors felt they could not move forward with charges against the Dallas Cowboys superstar.

We reached out to Zeke's camp for a comment on the matter, but they declined.

As we previously reported ... 19-year-old Kyle Johnson, who was working as a security guard, was knocked over a metal railing during a parking lot dispute on May 19 at the Electric Daisy Carnival.

The Cowboys running back was placed in handcuffs after the shove -- but the 24-year-old was NOT arrested because Johnson told the cops he did not want to press charges.

But, after Zeke was not suspended by the NFL for the incident ... Johnson decided to file a police report.

Cops spent most of July gathering evidence in the case ... but according to the police docs, they decided they will not be moving forward with charges and will close the case.

It's big news for Elliott ... he now has one less thing he to worry about while his contract holdout with the Cowboys pushes forward.

Troubled NFL player Josh Gordon is getting another shot ... the league announced it will conditionally reinstate the receiver on Sunday.

The New England Patriots star was indefinitely suspended back in December for committing several violations of the league's substance abuse policy.

Gordon's been suspended several times since 2012 ... and also stepped away from the game to focus on his mental health last year.

The league made the news official on Friday, saying Gordon will be able to attend team practices and meetings ... but will not be able to play until he's properly conditioned.

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell released a statement ... saying "We are all rooting for Josh to succeed, both personally and professionally."

Jay-Z had multiple reasons for becoming part of the NFL family, and TMZ Sports has learned one of them is that he is going to become part owner of an NFL team ... and it's going to happen soon.

Sources connected to Jay and with direct knowledge tell us ... Jay is going to have a "significant ownership interest" in an NFL team.

As for which team ... we're not being told, but we are told "it is going to happen in the near future."

We're told Jay wants to become a part owner "because he's a huge fan, already has a sports business and wants to continue to be a change agent for the NFL."

There's a question ... can Jay manage players if he owns a team? Our sources make it clear ... "Jay is not an NFL agent and does not take part in the operations of the NFL players in Roc Nation."

Giants god Lawrence Taylor says the G-Men have found a brand new franchise QB ... 'cause Daniel Jones is the future in the Big Apple.

"I've seen him a little bit," LT says ... "He's a hell of a football player."

Of course, the critics were out in full force after New York seemed to reach when it picked Jones with the No. 6 overall selection in April's NFL Draft.

But, the guy dazzled in his preseason debut last week ... and Taylor clearly noticed -- saying he was surprised to see it!!!

"He went to Duke," Taylor said, "so, that's hard to believe he's a hell of a football player!"

But, don't get it twisted ... LT doesn't think Jones' skill set should mean the immediate end of Eli Manning's time as a starter in New York. The pass rusher tells us he'd like to see the 2-time Super Bowl champ stay as long as he wants.

"As long as his terms are reasonable," Taylor adds.

By the way, we had to ask about Khalil Mack -- a guy Taylor said last season is nowhere close to his level -- and ya gotta hear if he's changed his tune since the Bear's monster 2018 season.

There's more ... Taylor was in NYC to celebrate Sapphire Gentlemen's Club's debut in Time Square -- and it sure seemed like he and a buncha other athletes had a great time!!!