NFL

The tragic deaths of three University of Virginia football players have rocked the sports world ... and many of the nation's top athletes -- including LeBron James and Patrick Mahomes -- are now reaching out to the campus to send their thoughts and prayers.

The Chiefs star QB and the NBA legend both sent out emotional tweets after learning that D'Sean Perry, Lavel Davis and Devin Chandler had been shot and killed in a horrifying incident on the UVA campus on Sunday night.

James called it "Sad Sad Sad" with a crying emoji ... while Mahomes wrote simply, "Prayers for @UVAFootball."

Dozens of other athletes have sent their condolences to the trio's family members and the Cavaliers' community in wake of the deaths ... with Julian Edelman calling it all a "sad sad day in Virginia."

"If we don't do anything, nothing changes," the former New England Patriots star said on his Twitter page. "This has to stop. Now."

Former NFL star and UVA alum Thomas Jones added in a tweet of his own that he was "sending love & light to the families & friends of the victims as well as the entire #VirginiaFootball program."

Arizona Cardinals star DeAndre Hopkins also shared his condolences ... and acknowledged how Davis' last Instagram post was about a play he made during Sunday's game against the Rams.

"My prayers go out to the whole UVA community today. Especially to the families, friends, and fans of Lavel Davis Jr., D’Sean Perry, and Devin Chandler," he said.

"These men were taken too soon and for no reason. The last post on Lavel’s story was a play from my game yesterday and it is a reminder that everyday here on this earth is a blessing and a gift. Make the best of it. Rest In Peace my brothers 🖤."

As we reported, officials say Perry, Davis and Chandler were all killed after they were shot on a bus in a UVA parking structure after they had just returned from a class field trip.

Police say former Cavalier running back Christopher Darnell Jones Jr., who left the team over a year ago but remained a student on campus, was the gunman.

Gisele Bündchen is getting super close to a handsome MMA teacher ... and sources connected to the former couple -- Tom Brady and Gisele, that is -- are questioning the timing.

The guy is Joaquim Valente, a jiu-jitsu instructor who lives in Miami. Gisele has known him for at least a year and a half. She took lessons from him, and then signed her 2 kids up for lessons as well.

Gisele and Joaquim were out to dinner in Costa Rica Saturday, with her kids, Benjamin and Vivian. It's especially interesting, because Tom and Gisele made Costa Rica their vacation spot during the off-season.

Gisele and Joaquim did a super sexy photo shoot together more than a year ago for Dust Magazine ... presumably about the art of jiu-jitsu.

Gisele has posted her fondness for Joaquim's MMA teaching skills, saying it gave her confidence and empowerment.

A source connected to Gisele tells TMZ GB and JV are not dating, noting many friends were present in Costa Rica. The source says there were 6 adults and 8 kids at the get-together.

Another source close to the ex-couple is not buying it, asking why this Miami guy is in Costa Rica with her. This source added, "It always seemed weird she just one day abruptly ended the marriage."

Page Six was the first to report on Joaquim and Gisele.

All he wanted for his birthday was a big booty ... cake -- and that's exactly what Chanel Iman got her NFL boyfriend, Davon Godchaux, to celebrate his bday!

The New England Patriots' defensive tackle celebrated his 27th trip around the sun with his supermodel girlfriend over the weekend on a luxurious yacht.

You can see Iman and Godchaux -- who signed a contract extension with the Pats in July -- smiling, doing a bit of karaoke ... basically all lovey-dovey.

But, the best part is the bday cake Iman got him -- of a woman's booty in red and black lingerie.

"Celebrating you Big Daddy," the 31-year-old Atlanta model said in her IG post of the booty-full treat.

"Happy Birthday! I love you."

It seems Davon loved his birthday cake 'cause the 27-year-old licked the voluptuous buns right in front of the camera.

"The best birthday ever!" Godchaux said in the comments under Iman's post, "My love, my everything! Love you forever and always ❤️😝😝"

It's crystal clear Iman and Godchaux are going strong after going IG official this April ... just months after New York Giants' WR Sterling Shepard filed for divorce.

And, it seems Shepard -- who has two kids with Iman -- may have moved on as well ... the wide receiver shared a photo of him and Shaniece Hairston at Odell Beckham's 30th birthday bash!

Christian McCaffrey's mom got a little PG-13 rated while celebrating her son's touchdown on Sunday night -- droppin' a LOUD F-bomb from her seat in a stadium suite!!!

Lisa McCaffrey let the curse word fly in the 4th quarter of San Francisco's big win over the Los Angeles Chargers at Levi's Stadium ... after her son ran in a 2-yard, go-ahead TD.

NBC's cameras caught her cheering with family and friends following the score -- and, you can see clear as day, at one point, she hurled out a "F*** yeah!" while partying.

Many on social media noticed it on the game's broadcast ... and loved the authenticity, lauding her for being so candid.

Of course, Lisa and the McCaffreys have had a lot to celebrate when it comes to Christian's career the last few weeks ... because after being traded from the Panthers to the Bay Area, he's now scored three TDs and thrown for one more.

The Commanders will be in amazing hands if Daniel Snyder does end up selling the team to Jeff Bezos and Jay-Z ... so says Mark Cuban, who tells TMZ Sports the duo would be "great" NFL owners.

Snyder revealed earlier this month he has hired Bank of America to explore a potential sale of the Washington franchise ... and it didn't take long for Jay and Jeff to express interest in putting in a bid.

In fact, the duo had a secret dinner in Los Angeles on Tuesday night to discuss it all ... breaking bread at a closed restaurant near the Sunset Strip for over two hours.

When we got Cuban -- arguably the most famous celeb owner in sports -- out in D.C. on Thursday ... he assured us the two titans would make for great honchos of the Commanders.

The Dallas Mavericks boss didn't elaborate further -- he had to jet quickly -- but he made it clear he's got full faith in the guys to turn the NFL org. around.

The NFL is paying tribute to the late John Madden once again ... this time, it announced it's starting a huge Thanksgiving Day tradition to honor the legendary coach and broadcaster.

The inaugural "John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration" will kick off on the Thursday holiday later this month ... with the NFL saying it has several tributes planned in Madden's memory.

Before each of the three games slated for Turkey Day -- the Bills vs. Lions, the Giants vs. Cowboys, and the Patriots vs. Vikings -- a recording of Madden talking about football and the holiday will be played.

The league also said in its announcement Friday that each network broadcasting the trio of games will pick a "Madden Player of the Game" following the contests, and the NFL Foundation will give each recipient a $10,000 check in their name to a youth or high school football program of their choice.

In addition, the NFL said each player participating in Thanksgiving Day games will have a Madden sticker on the back of their helmet ... while a Madden logo will be painted on the 25-yard line of all three fields.

"No one cared more or contributed more to our game than John Madden," league commish Roger Goodell said Friday. "Honoring his memory and impact on the NFL is important, and Thanksgiving Day brings all of the elements significant to John to life -- family, football, food, and fun."

John, who initially gained fame for his role as Raiders head coach and later became the face of the most popular football video game ever, passed away last December.

Former Cleveland Browns star Joe Thomas just went scorched earth on Jim Irsay ... blasting the Colts owner for hiring "drinking buddy" Jeff Saturday as Indy's next head coach.

Thomas, who played 11 years in the league, didn't hold back a thing while appearing on NFL Network's "Good Morning Football" on Friday ... calling the Saturday hire "the most egregious thing I can ever remember happening in the NFL."

"It is one of the most disrespectful things I have ever seen in my entire life," the ex-offensive lineman said.

Thomas' main issue is Saturday's experience. The former Colts center never coached at the NFL or collegiate level -- and had been working as an ESPN analyst at the time of the hiring.

Thomas called it a complete slap to the face of all of the other coaches in the league who have worked tirelessly at their crafts for years.

Thomas then said Saturday's introductory press conference earlier this week -- one in which Irsay said he was actually glad Jeff didn't have prior head coaching experience -- was also disrespectful to those around the NFL.

"I was in France with my kids earlier in the week, but when I saw this, I thought it was a joke," he said. "I thought maybe I had a little Google translate and all the sudden I'm in the wrong calendar and it's April 1st or something going on."

Thomas threw some shade Saturday's way too ... seemingly implying the 47-year-old should have simply rejected Irsay's job offer.

Baker Mayfield lost his mind -- and maybe even pieces of his forehead and scalp -- following the Panthers' win on Thursday ... headbutting his helmeted teammates -- repeatedly!!!

Carolina's backup QB performed the insane act just seconds before his squad officially beat the Falcons, 25-15, on "Thursday Night Football" ... and the move was so weird, even his own teammates appeared to be caught off guard.

Check out the footage from the game's broadcast -- you can see Baker, in nothing but a baseball cap, slamming his head into his teammates' over and over again as they came off the field.

Nearly every guy that he hit looked at him with a "what're you doing, bro" expression ... but Mayfield didn't seem to care.

Of course, the Panthers had only won one game since September prior to Thursday night -- and Baker's had a brutal year, getting hurt and then being benched in favor of P.J. Walker -- so maybe he didn't quite remember how to act following a victory?

The rap track Eli Manning has been working on with Fivio Foreign is finally here ... and let's just say, the former New York Giants star was spittin' some crazy bars!!!

Just kiddin' ... but the song is still fun nonetheless!!!

The ex-quarterback, Fivio, and Eli's former center, Shaun O'Hara, officially dropped the song on Thursday ... with a hilarious video accompanying it.

In the song -- a "Giants on 3" remix to the NY rapper's "1 on 3" tune -- Manning and O'Hara take turns rappin' over Fivio's beat.

Neither former Giants player is all that great on the mic -- but, hey, at least Fivio killed it!

The video, meanwhile, is pretty awesome ... Eli and Shaun rocked colorful outfits and did their best to at least pretend to look like they belonged in the booth.

Eli, Shaun and Fivio initially began working on the music earlier this week ... when all three were seen in the studio taking shots together.

Daniel Snyder, Roger Goodell and the NFL have all been sued ... after D.C. attorney general Karl Racine claimed they "colluded" to deceive fans about an investigation into the alleged sexual misconduct that went down for years in the Washington Commanders' org.

Racine announced the suit's filing at a news conference on Thursday ... using stern language while insisting Snyder, Goodell, the NFL and the Commanders all covered up probe findings in order to "protect their profits and their image."

Racine told media members that following his office's own investigation of the Commanders -- which he said included a reviewal of thousands of internal documents produced by the team and the league -- "clear wrongdoing and violations of D.C. residents' consumer rights" were found.

Yet, Racine claimed Goodell, Snyder and other officials lied about the findings ... accusing them of "secretly" entering into an agreement in order to protect everyone involved.

"Mr. Snyder was not only aware of the toxic culture within his organization," Racine said in announcing the suit, "he encouraged it and he participated in it."

As we previously reported, Snyder and the Commanders had been accused of wrongdoing for over a decade by multiple ex-employees.

The league said it investigated it all, and ultimately fined the team $10 million.

Following the penalty, Snyder said the org. would be making sweeping and progressive changes, including naming his wife, Tanya, the new co-CEO.

Racine clearly believes more should have been done ... and as part of the suit, is seeking "financial penalties" as well as a court order to force the NFL to release the findings of their probe into the Commanders.

AEW star Max Caster threw shade at Tom Brady, Kyrie Irving and Herschel Walker while rapping right before his match on Wednesday -- targeting three of the most controversial athletes of the moment.

Max and his tag team partner, Anthony Bowens, were walking to the ring to take on The Gunns and Swerve In Our Glory ... when the 33-year-old got busy on the mic.

Caster wasted no time going after TB12, who's struggled all season (game-winning drive on Sunday, aside) as he deals with his high-profile divorce from ex-wife Gisele.

Check out the performance.

"Acclaimed on the mic got the place going crazy, ya'll about to take more L's than Tom Brady," Caster rapped.

"Keep the fence work (???) it's awkward, we got the receipts like he's Herschel Walker."

"I'll make you cry til' you're eyes are burning, I'mma make you say sorry like Kyrie Irving."

Sheesh!

Of course, Tom's Bucs squad is 4-5 ... and after struggling on the field at times, some fans have wondered if he should have stayed retired.

Meanwhile, Herschel, a football legend and current U.S. Senate candidate in Georgia (his race is going to a runoff in early December), has been under attack after he was accused of reportedly paying for a woman's abortion ... despite running on a pro-life platform.

As for Kyrie ... he recently apologized to the Jewish community (though many were unfulfilled by his words) after he posted a link to a controversial film containing antisemitic messaging.

Christmas came early for a nurse in Minnesota ... 'cause Adam Thielen surprised her at work -- naming her 2022 Vikings Fan of the Year, and gifting her TWO Super Bowl tickets!!

The heartwarming moment was caught on video, showing the 2-time Pro Bowler walking to the health center's courtyard with a custom 22 jersey for Shirley Bowden.

The nurse -- who's worked at the hospital for nearly 20 years -- is a huge fan of the purple and gold team ... and was in complete shock when she saw the wide receiver at her job.

"Oh my God!" she yelled while surrounded by her colleagues.

Thielen gave her the presents ... and told her he hoped he and the Vikes would be the NFC team playing in the Big Game.

"You will be!" Bowden quickly said.

Bowden says she's been a fan of the Vikings fan since she was a little kid ... and goes to every game -- adding, "If you look at my row, I guarantee you I'm standing up."

The Vikings are known for this cool gesture ... just last year, Justin Jefferson surprised a female youth football coach -- who's also a nurse -- at practice.

Gisele Bündchen is makin' moves ... setting up her homestead right next to her ex-hubby.

TMZ has confirmed ... Gisele closed on an $11.5M home in the Miami Beach area, right across the creek where Tom Brady is building a house.

Sources connected with the former couple tell TMZ ... Tom knew Gisele was buying the house and it all has to do with co-parenting -- making it easy for the kids to go back and forth.

Gisele's home is 6,600 square feet and has all the bells and whistles ... a home theater, a gym and a playroom for the kids. It has a dock out back, just like Tom's. Page Six first broke the story of Gisele's purchase.

The biggest night in country music turned into a bit of a roast of Eli Manning -- with Peyton tossing several barbs his little bro's way throughout the evening ... and it was all hilarious!!

The Indianapolis Colts legend was co-hosting the annual CMA Awards show with Luke Bryan in Nashville -- and while a bunch of music stars caught playful shade from the duo ... Eli appeared to find himself as the butt of the jokes more often than not.

In fact, it only took about 10 minutes into the show for Peyton to make his first dig at the former New York Giants star, who he co-hosts his weekly "Monday Night Football" "Manningcast" with.

"Peyton, let me break it to you, I don't prepare," Bryan said during the opening monologue. "I'm just kind of a wing it kind of host."

"Trust me, that's clear," Peyton responded. "So, what you're saying is, this is my worst nightmare. But it's actually OK, because I do a show with my brother Eli -- I'm used to this lack of professionalism."

A couple hours later, Peyton threw some more quills Eli's way while chatting with the Brothers Osborne.

"So, let me guess," Peyton said turning to the country music group. "Your mom makes you work with your brother too, right?"

Eli certainly noticed it all -- and took to Twitter to gripe about his older bro.

"If my math is correct," the younger Manning said, "that is the 3rd shot Peyton has taken at me on the CMA's."

Matthew Stafford's wife, Kelly, says she's breaking down emotionally after the Rams quarterback was put in the NFL's concussion protocol this week ... saying straight up, "I'm not OK."

The L.A. star finished the Rams' loss to the Buccaneers on Sunday seemingly without issue -- but according to head coach Sean McVay, members of the team's medical staff found he didn't pass their postgame checkup with flying colors.

McVay said the doctors thought it would be best to put the QB in the league's protocol to ensure his safety ... though the coach added it wasn't clear if Stafford officially suffered a concussion.

The 34-year-old will now have to pass a myriad of tests regardless in order to be cleared to play in this Sunday's game against the Cardinals ... and Kelly said it all has her worried sick.

The mother of four wrote in a social media post Wednesday afternoon head injuries terrify her ... saying, "I have every emotion running through me. Concerned, angry, sad, tired... all of them."

Kelly, who married Stafford in 2015, has been very vocal about her fears of the effects of football head injuries ... even breaking down in tears last month when talking about the Tua Tagovailoa situation.

"If you have listened to my podcast at all, you know how big a deal it is to me," Kelly wrote Wednesday. "The head is not something to be messed with... and I hope as this sport develops, so does the concern for head health and the research around it."

Eli Manning was big drippin' when he hit the studio with Fivio Foreign on Tuesday ... and the 2x Super Bowl-winning QB even took shots with the NYC rapper!!

Fivio tweeted on Tuesday, "I'm goin to the studio w Eli Manning" -- then later posted a video with the former Giants QB and his old teammate and center, Shaun O'Hara, pouring shots.

"We doing shots. Eli. Shaun. Toasting. We in the studio making Big Drip," said Fivio.

It's unclear what sparked the unexpected linkup ... but Eli and the "Big Drip" rapper appeared to be having a great time at the studio while pouring shots for one another.

41-year-old Eli wore a yellow Celine hoodie (they go for like $1,100) and bucket hat ... and had an iced-out chain around his neck in the video.

Eli's studio sesh had a different feel than the popular "Manningcast" show he's accustomed to hosting with his brother, Peyton, during "Monday Night Football."

Nevertheless, it was funny to see the legendary NY football star enjoying himself with Fivio.

Earlier Tuesday, Fivio said new music is on the way, tweeting, "Ov course I'm droppin friday 2 lol.."

Maybe we'll hear Eli on the new project?!? One can hope!