NFL

The NFL Pro Bowl captains have been announced ... but they're not superstar athletes like Aaron Rodgers and Patrick Mahomes -- it's Pete Davidson and Snoop Dogg!!

TMZ Sports has confirmed ... the "Saturday Night Live" alum and rap legend will be going head-to-head when the festivities go down next month near Las Vegas ... with Pete representing the NFC, and Snoop leading the AFC.

It's unclear what exactly their roles will be ... but we're assuming they'll be working alongside Peyton and Eli Manning, who were named the coaches for each conference.

Of course, Eli and Pete (a massive Giants fan) have built a tight friendship recently -- they even share a joint Instagram account -- so we take it their chemistry will certainly be a plus when the competition goes down.

As for Snoop, he's always had ties to the sport ... and he even has his own youth football league. On top of that, he gave a helluva performance at Super Bowl LVI last year.

Snoop spoke about his captaincy in a statement to People ... saying, "I'm comin' back to the NFL field, but this time, instead of performing, I'm going head-to-head with Pete and competing for the title of The Pro Bowl Games Champion."

"The competition is going to go off, but we all know that Peyton and our AFC squad are gonna do some big things. We'll end up on that podium."

Davidson kept it short and sweet ... adding, "I'm doing this to impress my Uncle Mike."

CeeDee Lamb is an All-Pro receiver, but he might be an even better teammate ... 'cause the Dallas Cowboys star gave kicker Brett Maher some solid words of encouragement after missing multiple PATs during Monday's playoff game against the Buccaneers.

The Cowboys just released footage of players mic'd up for the Wild Card matchup ... showing the rollercoaster of emotions the team went through amid the 31-14 blowout.

One clip shows Lamb quickly consoling Maher after missing a second-straight point attempt ... making sure the special teams star wasn't beating himself up too much for the blunders.

"We're behind you, bro, you're good," Lamb said as Maher made his way back to the bench. "You're good, bro."

Maher was clearly happy to hear the kind words ... saying, "Appreciate you."

Lamb followed up with even more nice things to say ... adding, "S***, you've done bailed us out hella times. We're with you, bro. I promise you, we're with you."

Maher -- who was still visibly trying to wrap his head around the failed attempts -- replied, "Appreciate you, buddy."

Despite the solid gesture, Maher went on to miss a total of four extra points -- an NFL record -- but eventually was able to get one through the uprights.

Damar Hamlin is continuing to make huge strides in his road to recovery ... Bills head coach Sean McDermott said the defensive back is now at Buffalo's practice facility "almost daily," and nearing a return to team meetings and more.

McDermott provided the good news in a Wednesday chat with media members ... saying Hamlin has recovered enough from his medical emergency two and a half weeks ago to the point where he's now "just trying to get back to a little bit of a routine."

"It's limited just overall," the Bills' head man said ... explaining Hamlin isn't quite ready for meetings or a full day of work just yet. "Just getting himself acclimated again and taking it one step, one baby step at a time here."

As we reported, Hamlin went into cardiac arrest on Jan. 2 during the Bills vs. Bengals "Monday Night Football" game ... but has steadily improved over the last couple weeks.

He's been up, walking and talking ... though he's yet to attend a Bills game since his release from the hospital. But, he's watched his teammates intently from home, even tweeting his thoughts on Buffalo's playoff game against the Dolphins last Sunday throughout the contest.

It's not yet clear if he'll make it to the sidelines to catch the Bills' huge playoff game against Cincinnati on Sunday ... McDermott stressed it's a day-by-day process for the 24-year-old.

Lisa Guerrero says her one season as a reporter for "Monday Night Football" was absolute hell ... revealing things got so bad at the gig, she actually suffered a miscarriage while on the sidelines during a game.

The 58-year-old, who took over the 'MNF' role from Melissa Stark in the 2003 NFL season, explained the horrifying situation in her new book, Warrior: My Path to Being Brave.

She said from the day she first got the job, she faced unfair ridicule and criticism from males in the sports world ... particularly from her 'MNF' boss, executive producer Freddie Gaudelli.

Guerrero claimed in the memoir Gaudelli criticized her work often ... and it, combined with the misogynistic trolling she received regularly from viewers, gave her such stress, she had actually considered dying by suicide.

Guerrero -- who had gotten pregnant with her fiancé, former MLB pitcher Scott Erickson, during the season -- says the mountain of pressure eventually came to a head late in the year ... when she suffered a miscarriage while on the job.

In the book, according to an excerpt obtained by PEOPLE, the former "Best Damn Sports Show Period" host said she was doing her reports from the sideline, when all of a sudden, she felt intense pain in her abdomen. Moments later, she said, "I could feel blood leaking."

Guerrero said she wanted to bolt to the bathroom, but had to do a live shot first. She said she felt "dizzy and nauseated" during the hit. Eventually, she made her way to the restroom.

"As I sat on the toilet," Guerrero said, "I couldn't believe the blood pouring out of me. It had soaked through my pants. I shoved a bunch of paper towels in my underwear."

Guerrero said she didn't tell anybody about the episode, and finished her work for the night, before heading to the airport.

"I don't blame one person for this," said Guerrero, who was fired from 'MNF' following the '03 season. "The miscarriage wasn't because of Freddie, and it wasn't because of one radio talk show host or one bad column. It was a culmination of the entire season of negativity and cruelty. It was really cruel."

She added that she's now hoping her story can deter bullying and trolling moving forward.

The Packers will donate $100,000 worth of Automated External Defibrillators to schools and recreational sports leagues in the Green Bay area ... in light of Damar Hamlin's medical emergency, the team announced Wednesday.

The team collaborated with Bellin Health, the team's official healthcare provider, to donate money for 80 AED devices ... which typically cost around $1,000, and can save lives. Unfortunately, many places aren't equipped. Green Bay is looking to change that.

The Packers and Bellin Health released a joint statement ... saying the donation would provide the AEDs where youth and recreational sports are played across Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

"After seeing Damar Hamlin's shocking cardiac arrest and witnessing the incredible response from the emergency personnel and medical professionals who treated him, we recognized our responsibility to take action in our own community," said Packers Exec Mark Murphy.

He continued ... "Damar's injury also reminds us that cardiac emergencies are experienced each day throughout the country and our region."

"We're proud to work with Bellin Health to equip more athletic facilities and organizations with AEDs, as well as the tools and skills they need to save a life."

After the facilities receive the AEDs, which administer a shock to the heart to reestablish an effective rhythm, Bellin Health said they would ensure reps from the various organizations are adequately trained in CPR and AED use.

"We are extremely grateful to the Green Bay Packers for this incredible donation of life-saving equipment to the communities we serve," said Bellin Health President Chris Woleske.

"Access to this equipment combined with education surrounding how to provide aid in a cardiac emergency is proven to save lives."

Joe Burrow had a digit disaster at his press conference on Wednesday ... 'cause the superstar quarterback wore the wrong jersey!!

The 26-year-old showed off the new look as he met with reporters ... and he was immediately asked if he was ditching #9 for #8.

Naturally, as soon as Burrow looked down to check what they were talking about ... he started cracking up.

"I guess I put the wrong one on," Burrow laughed. "So what happened was, I forgot about the press conference ... so I put my jersey back on. But apparently, it wasn't my jersey."

"Guess it's been that kind of day, huh?"

FYI -- #8 belongs to Brandon Allen, the backup quarterback who resigned with the Bengals last March.

Hopefully, Burrow remembers to wear his own jersey when the Bengals take on the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Round of the playoffs on Sunday.

Speaking of the game, Burrow eventually got to talkin' about the big road matchup ... and he's not concerned about the Bills being the betting favorite.

"I always enjoy going on the road. Just you and your guys," Burrow said. "It feels like it's you against the world and that's where we like to be."

"Never feel like an underdog."

Antonio Brown is deflecting responsibility for a sexually-explicit private picture shared on his Snapchat ... claiming his account was hacked.

The ex-NFL superstar broke his silence on the situation Wednesday ... saying he's working with the social media platform to resolve the issue.

As we previously reported, AB's account posted a picture of his ex, Chelsie Kyriss, performing oral sex on him in bed ... and the image was shared all over the Internet.

Chelsie addressed the photo shortly after it went public ... saying she was aware of the post and reported it to Snap.

Chelsie also stated she had previously asked AB to keep their past relationship private ... but he's refused.

A spokesperson for the platform told TMZ Sports AB's account was suspended and an investigation was underway, citing Community Guidelines that "prohibit sexually explicit content and bullying or harassment of any kind."

Given AB's previous Snap activity -- including posting fake nude images of Gisele Bundchen -- it's entirely possible he is attempting to cover his ass ... considering almost all states have laws on the books to punish people who post revenge porn.

But, if his account was seriously hacked, it's a truly unfortunate situation for everyone involved.

The Navy isn't gonna be happy with this.

Stephen A. Smith had a BOLD take this week, but it wasn't about whether Dak Prescott is elite ... it was his reaction to Rihanna performing the Super Bowl halftime show -- simply saying, "she ain't Beyoncé."

The ESPN personality made the comment during his appearance on "The Sherri Show" Wednesday ... claiming it's no shade to RiRi, but will most certainly come across that way with the singer's diehard fanbase.

"Rihanna's music is fantastic," SAS said during the interview. "She's great. She's a sister. I love her dearly, I listen to her music, I'm gonna support her 'til the cows come home."

"I'm just telling you, for me, there's Beyoncé and there's everybody else. Just like there's Michael Jackson and there's everybody else."

Smith says he isn't NOT excited to see Rihanna do her thing ... but makes it clear there's only room for one at the top.

"Ladies and gentlemen, [Rihanna is] a lot of things. She's spectacular actually and congratulations on new mamahood. There's one thing she's not -- she ain't Beyoncé."

SAS says he mentioned Beyoncé because the icon did the SB XLVII show in 2013 without the likes of Coldplay and Bruno Mars ... although she did have support from her former Destiny's Child groupmates, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams.

Here's the thing, though -- Rihanna could certainly do her gig alone as well ... as her show has been completely under wraps since it was announced.

Smith goes on to explain his stance ... comparing the situation to the show's host.

"I like television," he added. "I like a lot of talent out there. There's some spectacular females in television, I just want to say that. Everybody ain't Sherri. That's not throwing shading on them. That's appreciating their greatness but understanding, there's levels!"

Bottom line, both Rihanna and Beyoncé are incredibly successful and talented ... so there's really no need to pit them against each other. But, Stephen A. is entitled to his opinion.

The whole interview airs Wednesday ... check your local listings.

Don't fret, Cowboys fans ... Martin Gramatica -- one of the best kickers in NFL history -- is predicting a bounce-back game for Brett Maher, explaining all the guy has to do is just "forget" about his dreadful performance in Tampa.

Maher missed four extra points in the Cowboys' playoff win over the Buccaneers on Monday night -- and he looked downright beat up over the performance both during and afterward.

But, Gramatica told Babcock on "TMZ Sports" on Tuesday that he doesn't think the Dallas placekicker should be all that concerned ... explaining it was just one game.

Gramatica advises the 33-year-old to move on quickly ... adding that he believes Maher has a whole season of success that should trump his bad evening in South Florida.

"I would just say, do what you did throughout the year," said Gramatica, who made 76.4 percent of his kicks in his 11-year NFL career. "Short memory. Forget about it. You're good enough. You got us here."

Maher made 29 of his 32 field goal attempts this season ... and rarely struggled prior to the playoff stinker. Gramatica made it clear both the kicker and his team should focus on that -- as opposed to the missed kicks against the Bucs.

"The message I guarantee you from his teammates and coaches is, You got us here," the former Bucs and Cowboys kicker said. "You helped us get here. Some of your game-winners got us here."

"So, forget about it. Next game, we're going to need you."

Tom Brady's biggest fan is taking a page out of Gisele Bundchen's book ... calling out the quarterback's teammates for the Buccaneers' playoff loss to the Dallas Cowboys.

Stunning model Veronika Rajek -- who sports 3.5 million followers on Instagram -- has gone viral for her TB12 support this season ... even going as far as to say she loves the 7-time Super Bowl champ.

Just like all Tampa Bay fans, Rajek was left in disbelief after Brady and Co. were torn apart on Monday Night Football and booted from the postseason ... and instead of focusing on TB12's less-than-stellar performance, she pointed fingers at the other 52 men on the roster.

"I'm just sorry," Rajek said on IG after the game. "But one guy cannot play for everyone on the field. TB you did your best. Like always."

"But one piece of the puzzle doesn't make a picture."

The comments are similar to what Brady's ex-wife said after the New England Patriots lost to the New York Giants in Super Bowl XLVI ... when she infamously stated, "My husband can not f***ing throw the ball and catch the ball at the same time. I can't believe they dropped the ball so many times."

Antonio Brown went too far on social media again -- the controversial former NFL superstar just shared a sexually-explicit private picture on his Snapchat with the mother of his children.

The post -- which has since been deleted from AB's profile -- showed the woman performing oral sex on the Super Bowl champ in bed. The picture quickly circulated on other social media platforms early Tuesday morning.

It's unclear when the image was taken, but we're assuming it isn't recent -- things have gotten ugly between the two sides, with Kyriss claiming AB sent "explicit videos" to their son during an alleged domestic violence incident back in November.

AB has become notorious for his Snap updates recently -- as we previously reported, he shared a poorly Photoshopped pic of Tom Brady's ex, Gisele Bündchen ... editing her face onto a nude body.

The former Steeler has also trolled Brady throughout the quarterback's divorce ... sharing memes mocking his old teammate.

It's unclear why AB posted the NSFW pic, but he's been active on Twitter as well ... saying, "Don't play wit me. Play Football."

The city of Buffalo has some fresh new artwork ... weeks after Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest on the football field, a local artist painted a mural of the Bills safety!

Adam Zyglis, the artist, was the mastermind behind the project ... and he collaborated with Rory Allen to find the perfect place for the mural. The guys decided on Larkin Square.

FYI, Larkin Square is outside downtown Buffalo ... and is about 15 minutes away from Highmark Stadium, where the Bills play their home games.

Adam, an editorial cartoonist at the Buffalo News, tells us the inspiration for the mural was born when he heard 24-year-old Hamlin was being released from the hospital.

"I completed the illustration late last week after reading news of Damar Hamlin returning to Buffalo and coming home," Adam told us. "That moment of tragedy united the country across team allegiances and party lines."

He continued ... "It was a human moment, and his recovery was an illustration of Buffalo's strength, love, and resiliency. As the coach said, it was much bigger than football."

The 17-foot-tall illustration, which shows Damar in his Bills uniform making a heart gesture with his hands, was hand-drawn by Adam and took 4-5 hours to create and color.

The mural was installed on Monday, and once Damar saw the sick artwork on social media, he tweeted, "Where is this?" with a heart emoji and two fire emojis.

Of course, Damar hasn't returned to the field since being released from a Buffalo hospital last week ... however, Hamlin did visit his teammates at the facility over the weekend.

Hamlin supported his squad as he watched them defeat the Dolphins in the Wild-Card round ... and will be cheering for the Bills in the divisional round when they play the Bengals.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Russell Gage was forced to leave Monday night's playoff game on a backboard ... and the scene was scary -- particularly in the wake of Damar Hamlin's on-field medical emergency just two weeks ago.

Gage went down awkwardly late in the fourth quarter of TB's blowout loss to the Dallas Cowboys -- and he didn't get up immediately ... prompting officials and medical personnel to race onto the field to tend to him.

The 26-year-old wideout, who took a violent hit to the head and neck area on the play, stayed down for several minutes ... all while Cowboys and Buccaneers players looked on with worried expressions on their faces.

Gage was ultimately strapped to a backboard and rushed to the hospital.

Following the game, Bucs head coach Todd Bowles said Tom Brady's target had a concussion and was being evaluated for potential neck injuries. He was not sure if Gage had movement in all of his extremities.

"His fingers were moving when he was down there," Bowles said. "I don't know about the rest."

The terrifying moment happened just 14 days after Hamlin was taken off the field in an ambulance during a similar scene on Monday Night Football as well.

Hamlin, thankfully, has since made tremendous strides in recovering from the crisis. We're all now hoping Gage sees similar results.

Tom Brady ain't ready to call it a career -- at least, not publicly in the immediate aftermath of Monday night's playoff loss to the Cowboys -- the star quarterback told reporters he's still "truly" undecided about his football future.

Brady addressed media members for around five minutes following the Buccaneers' 31-14 loss to Dallas in the opening round of the 2023 postseason ... and was noncommittal when it came to questions about his next steps.

"I'm going to go home and get a good night sleep -- as good as I can tonight," the 45-year-old said ... before adding that he has no timetable for a career decision.

"This has been a lot of focus on, you know, this game. So, yeah. It'll just be one day at a time. Truly."

Brady then bid farewell to Buccaneers reporters -- a gesture that some believe could have potentially tipped his hand.

"Thank you everybody for welcoming me," Tom said ... "Just very grateful for the respect and I hope I gave the same thing back to you guys. So, thank you very much."

If it is the end, it certainly wasn't the storybook finish the future Hall of Famer would have liked. Brady looked messy for almost the entire evening against Dallas, completing just 53 percent of his 66 passes and throwing a back-breaking interception in the first half.

Tom -- a free agent this offseason -- does have options moving forward. He can return to Tampa, or he can go elsewhere ... reportedly, several other teams want him in 2023. Or, he can jump into the broadcasting deal he already inked in 2022.

A retirement decision last year ultimately came in February, before he reversed course just a couple weeks later. So, buckle in ... a long offseason of Brady speculation awaits.

Daniel Jones has what it takes to lead the Giants to a Super Bowl win in New York ... according to David Tyree, who knows a little something about winning a Lombardi Trophy.

The former Giants receiver and special teams ace joined Babcock and Mojo on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs daily on FS1) -- a day after the G-Men won a road playoff game -- where the Super Bowl 42 hero was asked if Jones was, without any doubt, the team's franchise QB.

"I think I said 6 to 8 weeks back, Daniel Jones is the quarterback for the New York Giants. You don't allow gold to walk out of the building for the potential of platinum, right?" Tyree asked.

"We're not gonna sit up here and say he deserves Deshaun Watson money, but he deserves that full-blown opportunity to represent this organization in the same manner that he did this year. He's earned the right, he's been dominant, he's been consistent, he's limited turnovers. He's done everything you can ask a quarterback to do and he's got the right temperament in the New York City market."

Of course, David was half of (arguably) the greatest play in Super Bowl history, the "Helmet Catch." Tyree, with the Giants trailing Tom Brady and the undefeated Patriots by 4 points with under 2 minutes left in the 4th quarter, and All-Pro Rodney Harrison blanketing him, miraculously came down with a crucial Eli Manning pass on 3rd & 5.

Just a few plays later, Manning threw the Super Bowl-winning touchdown pass to Plaxico Burress.

Question is, can 25-year-old Jones play well enough to lead the Giants to another Super Bowl?

"Yeah, I think the Giants are closer than I ever could imagine. Let's just be honest, I believe in all those guys who play at wide receivers but I'm just as good as them and I was the 3rd and 4th wide receiver on the roster. This is amazing what's happening."

David says with an offseason to add talent, the team will continue to improve.

"They're gonna be able to have some salary cap, able to make some good moves in the market in the offseason but obviously, they have to sign those centerpieces like Saquon [Barkley], Daniel Jones, and Dexter Lawrence."

Speaking of Catch-42 or the helmet catch ... Tyree is about to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the historic play by putting on a youth football camp, Catch Camp, in Arizona, the site of the 2008 catch, and this season's SB.

The camp, which will take place on February 3, doesn't just focus on running and catch  ... Tyree says they'll also teach the kids life skills.

There's more -- we also talked to David about the job head coach Brian Daboll's done this season, taking essentially the same roster Joe Judge went 4-13 with just a season ago, and going 9-7-1 and winning a playoff game.

Tyree, who was Director of Player Development after retiring, was let go by Judge and GM Dave Gettleman ... and let's just say he doesn't speak very fondly of how the organization was run under the two men.

Deshaun Watson's out of the NFL playoffs, but don't feel too bad for the guy ... the quarterback is now on a tropical vacation, cozying up with his smokin'-hot girlfriend, Jilly Anais.

While the league's last remaining teams are duking it out for a spot in Super Bowl LVI, the Cleveland Browns star's mind couldn't be further from a football field ... as he hit a boat on Monday with Anais in an exotic location -- and clearly enjoyed the free time.

In video that Anais shot and posted on her social media page ... you can see she and Watson got really close on the ship's deck -- sippin' what appeared to be some champagne while soaking in the warm weather.

The two also got some up-close-and-personal time in the water ... when Anais hopped on Watson's back while he was cruisin' around in the ocean on an underwater sea scooter.

The couple seemed to be wearing some matching bathing suits, too ... and at one point, Watson even got close to Anais' bikini bottoms with a bottle of Veuve.

The vacation is a much-needed one for Watson, who had a rough season. After serving an 11-game ban following allegations he was inappropriate with female massage therapists, he came back rusty, completing just 58.2 percent of his passes while throwing five interceptions in six starts.