NFL

The son of ex-NFL star Hugh Douglas was tragically killed in a car crash on Monday ... the younger Douglas' college announced this week.

He was just 20 years old.

According to police documents, obtained by The Philadelphia Inquirer, the accident occurred at around 5 PM in the Atlanta area. Police say Douglas' son, Hugh, and his Morehouse College roommate, Christion Files Jr., had been driving at a high rate of speed when their car careened off the road, hit two utility poles and flipped over.

Both men were pronounced deceased at the scene.

In its announcement of the tragedy, Morehouse College said the loss of the two "is deeply felt by all of us in the Morehouse family."

"Hugh Douglas was an exceptional student who displayed immense dedication and promise in pursuing a business administration degree with a concentration in finance," the school said, adding, "Christion Files Jr. was a remarkable young man who made his mark academically and in extracurricular activities."

The elder Douglas -- who made three Pro Bowls with the Philadelphia Eagles in the early 2000s -- has been posting tributes to his son throughout the past few days on X ... writing in one of them on Wednesday, "Your father is the only man that is truly happy you are better than them. You made me so proud."

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni expressed his condolences to the Douglas family on Tuesday -- saying in a press conference that he had always been told Douglas' son was "an unbelievable kid."

Aaron Rodgers has been seeing things before he ever dabbled in psychedelics -- the New York Jets quarterback went in depth about the time he believes he saw a UFO on "Hard Knocks" this week ... saying he felt like he was in a movie!!

The four-time MVP opened up on the 2005 experience on the season finale of the Max series Tuesday night ... when he was staying with his old college teammate, Steve Levy, in New Jersey prior to the NFL Draft and heard an alarm going off outside.

Naturally, the guys left the house to investigate ... and Rodgers couldn't believe his eyes.

"Up in the clouds, we heard this sound and we saw this tremendously large object moving through the sky," Rodgers said. "And it was like a scene out of 'Independence Day,' when the ships are coming into the atmosphere and they're creating this kind of like explosion-type fire in the sky."

"And we just saw this incredibly large object and froze, as anybody would because what the hell was going on? And eventually it went out of sight and nobody said a word."

Shortly after, the signal-caller says he heard the sound of fighter jets zooming above them ... as if aircrafts were chasing whatever they just saw.

"Again, we just stood there in just disbelief for another few minutes," Rodgers added. "Nobody said a word. Then we all looked at each other like, 'Did we just see what we think we just saw? What was that?'"

Rodgers -- who did his research on the subject after a lack of media coverage on the incident -- seemingly believes it was, in fact, a UFO ... because he heard an alarm go off at a nearby nuclear power plant, which tracks all the information he's gathered.

"And if you know anything about UFOs, there are a lot of sightings around nuclear energy, around volcanoes, around power plants," the Super Bowl winner said.

Carl Nassib -- the first openly gay player to ever log time in a regular season NFL game -- is retiring.

The 30-year-old pass rusher announced the news in a lengthy post on his Instagram page Wednesday morning ... revealing he's hanging up his cleats in order to focus on his business endeavors.

"This is a bittersweet moment for me," he said in his announcement. "Football has given me more than I ever could have imagined. I can truly hang up my helmet for the last time knowing I gave it everything I had."

Nassib entered the NFL back in 2016 ... when the Cleveland Browns took him in the third round. He piled up 5.5 sacks in two seasons, before he signed on with the Buccaneers in 2018.

Two seasons later, he joined the Raiders ... and after one year with the team, he came out as gay. In his first game following the historic announcement, he made a play that helped Las Vegas log a victory.

Nassib went on to play for the Bucs one more time last season ... before ending his career Wednesday.

"It was always my dream to play in the NFL, even as a walk-on," Nassib said, "and I really feel like the luckiest guy on the planet."

Deion Sanders' Colorado Buffaloes walked the walk on Saturday in a huge win over TCU ... and on Tuesday, they were rewarded for their performance -- earning a place in this week's Top 25 rankings.

The Associated Press just revealed the Buffs slid into No. 22 on the list ... after they scored a massive, 45-42 win over the Horned Frogs in Texas despite being 21-point underdogs.

Sanders' squad -- which was just 1-11 last season -- looked impressive ... especially PrimeTime's quarterback son, Shedeur, who threw for 510 yards and four touchdowns in the victory.

Coach Prime knew it was a big win after the final whistle had blown ... 'cause he gloated throughout his postgame press conference, even asking one of his biggest detractors repeatedly, "Do you believe?!"

Sanders and his team will have another opportunity to prove they're the real deal this weekend ... when they face off with Nebraska on Saturday in Boulder.

Chandler Jones' days in Las Vegas might be numbered -- the star defensive end just bashed the Raiders in a bizarre rant ... saying he no longer wants to play for them after not being allowed in the team facility.

Jones' verified Instagram profile posted a number of stories on Tuesday ... calling out head coach Josh McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler.

"They won't let me in the building tho, tryna provoke a n****," Jones' story said ... adding he wants the team's current defensive coordinator to take over on the sidelines.

"F*** it, I don't wanna play for the Raiders if that's my HC or GM ... I want Patrick Graham Ivy League n****."

Jones' account also shared what appeared to be a text to McDaniels ... saying he had to go to a local gym to work out "for no apparent reason."

"This is wild to me Josh and you know it you need to do what's right."

There's more ... but it's hard to make heads or tails of what exactly is going on. The team has not addressed the situation.

The timing of it all isn't ideal ... especially with the first week of the NFL season just days away.

Jones joined the Raiders last season on a three-year, $51 million contract ... after spending his first 10 seasons with the New England Patriots and Arizona Cardinals.

Both of Tom Brady's boys are now following in his footsteps ... the NFL legend just revealed his youngest son is beginning his football career this year -- albeit at a position that's a whole lot different than Dad's.

Brady said on his "Let's Go!" podcast Monday that Ben -- the 13-year-old who he shares with Gisele Bündchen -- told him recently that he's stepping onto the gridiron in 2023.

However, Tom said the kid won't be under center like he was.

"I was like, 'What do you want to play?'" Brady said. "And he's like, 'Tight end. I want to be like Gronk.'"

Brady, though, didn't seem disappointed one bit with the decision ... saying he actually texted Rob Gronkowski immediately after Ben broke the news to him.

"I'm like, 'Yo, my boy wants to be like you,'" Brady said. "And he loved it. He's like, 'That's so great.'"

Brady added on the pod that he's now preparing Ben for games ... explaining he spent a large portion of his Sunday night throwing the pigskin around with the teenager to get him accustomed to catching balls.

"He's going to be a little beast," Brady said.

Of course, Ben is now the second of Brady's offspring who will strap on the shoulder pads and helmet ... his eldest boy, Jack, has already been shining on high school fields as a quarterback.

It doesn't matter what number Ezekiel Elliott is rocking on the field, 'cause he won't have to choose between digits off it -- the New England Patriots star just copped a diamond chain that reps both his old AND new look ... and we're told it's worth a whopping $260k!!

TMZ Sports has learned, Zeke wanted a new piece in honor of his new No. 15 with the Pats ... so he hit up celeb diamond setter Gabriel French for the job.

But, Elliott -- who inked a one-year, $3 million deal with the Pats this offseason -- isn't leaving his Cowboys career in the past ... 'cause the pendant's reverse side displays "21," the number he wore during his time in Dallas.

We're told the pendant was made with 70 carats of VVS emerald and brilliant cut diamonds ... and the Cuban chain consists of 70 carats of emerald and round cut diamonds.

Gabriel has worked with a ton of big names in the NFL over the years ... including Odell Beckham, Jr., Jalen Hurts, Amari Cooper and Aaron Donald.

Antonio Brown's tenure as the owner of the National Arena League's Albany Empire was apparently much worse than previously imagined ... with two former players claiming the former NFL superstar threatened to pull a gun on them in a heated exchange.

Dwayne Hollis and Darius Prince detailed the confrontation in an interview with ESPN ... saying the whole incident was sparked by a social media tribute to former teammate Mo Ruffins, who died last year.

The post was quickly deleted from the Empire's account without explanation ... so when Hollis and Prince ran into AB at a local cigar lounge, they wanted answers.

The players allege Brown -- who was still fresh off buying his part of the team at the time -- got pissed over their approach, and told his assistant, Ryan Larkin, to go out to his car to get his weapon.

"AB looked at Ryan and was like, 'Hey, man, you still got the AR in the car? Go get it,'" Prince told the outlet. "Then I was like, I'm not going to allow this dude to walk out of here after you just threatened us."

Prince says cooler heads eventually prevailed and they were able to have a conversation ... but made it clear the threat rubbed him the wrong way.

It's no secret -- AB essentially ran the Empire into the ground in a matter of months, with former players and staffers accusing him of being a nightmare to work with ... eventually leading to the team getting booted from the league.

Ex-NFL star Ricky Williams says the league is moving in the right direction by loosening its stance on cannabis in recent years ... but tells TMZ Sports he's hoping Roger Goodell's organization goes one step further by allowing teams to treat players with marijuana after games.

Ricky -- who was suspended five times and missed a chunk of his career for violating the league's substance abuse policy -- believes society is going through a big transformation when it comes to accepting the benefits of cannabis and psychedelics ... and he's hoping the NFL follows suit.

FYI -- the NFL changed its marijuana policy in 2021 ... electing to only test players once a year and handing down less punishment if someone is popped for the drug.

Ricky is thrilled with the league's changed stance on cannabis but feels it would have great benefits for players if they were encouraged to use marijuana instead of pills during recovery.

"I think the next step, though, is at the end of a game, if we're on the plane ride home, the trainer is walking down the aisle and has two capsule cases -- one of Ambien, and the other one of Vicodin," Williams said. "And he's walking down the aisle and saying, 'Do you need any of this, do you need any of this?'"

"And the truth is, for football players, we do need something because it hurts, and you're all revved up and it's hard to calm down go to sleep. And I'd love to see cannabis as being one of those things that the trainer is walking down the aisle and offering to those players."

Ricky -- who legally changed his name to Errick Miron recently -- has been an advocate for the cause for decades ... and is outspoken on the positive effects cannabis had on his mental health throughout his career.

Now, Ricky's own lifestyle brand, "Highsman," is going strong ... and he said the whole experience has been nothing but positive.

Tom Brady and Irina Shayk are still on as a couple, even though lately it hasn't always looked that way ... TMZ has learned.

Sources with direct knowledge tell us the couple is, indeed, continuing to date and that they're still romantically involved. Obviously, we haven't seen much evidence of them canoodling in public the way we did in July and August ... but we're told they're an item.

It's unclear what the deal was with Irina's PDA post featuring her ex, Bradley Cooper, just a couple weeks ago ... but, clearly, it hasn't scared Tom off -- as he's still seeing her.

Remember, Irina threw everyone for a loop when she threw up a topless shot of herself and shirtless pic of BC as well ... where they certainly seemed to be getting cozy on the beach, which led folks to believe they might be getting back together. They share a kid, after all.

Unless she's in some kind of open relationship -- which isn't what we're hearing on our end -- then you can assume it was just a platonic thing ... and relatively harmless.

TMZ broke the story about Tom and Irina first linking up ... she spent the night at his pad here in L.A. for two days in a row -- and they were seen being affectionate in his car. After that, they were again spotted going in and out of the same London hotel a few weeks later.

There've been reports that Tom wasn't bothered by Irina's spotlighting of her baby daddy -- and there was even a claim they aren't necessarily in a committed relationship either.

Isaiah Hodgins' two kids will be in his heart, on his mind AND plastered to his feet this season ... 'cause TMZ Sports has learned the Giants receiver just copped some custom spikes to honor his two babies.

Cleat artist Joe Castro is the man behind the sweet pieces ... and he tells us the receiver actually reached out to him recently with the idea.

Castro took a bit to get the kids' faces painted on the Nike cleats just right ... but in the end, they came out great.

Featured on one of the shoes is Hodgins' son, who was born in 2020. On the other is Hodgins' newborn daughter.

Unclear when Hodgins will rock the blue-and-white spikes ... but it might just be next week, when NY opens its season against the Dallas Cowboys.

The New York wideout isn't the only NFL player who will rep his kids on his cleats this season ... Jackson also made customs for Bears defensive tackle Gervon Dexter -- who got his son and the mother of his child on his Nike cleats recently as well.

Book your tickets to Las Vegas in February, Jets fans ... 'cause your team is going to the Super Bowl there this season!!!

... at least, that's according to New York legend Joe Klecko, who tells TMZ Sports he truly believes, with Aaron Rodgers now under center, his old team will make it to the Big Game this year.

"I do think they will," the newly minted Hall of Famer said out in NYC this week. "Absolutely!"

"With our four-time MVP, how could you not go to the Super Bowl!?"

Of course, while Klecko is biased (he played for the Jets for 11 seasons) -- he didn't always feel Rodgers would be the game-changer for his former squad.

Back in February, he said on The Mike Francesa Podcast that he actually preferred it if the Jets would have gone after Derek Carr instead of Rodgers.

Seems, though, after watching the quarterback completely submerge himself into his new team and city ... Klecko is all in.

Justin Gatlin is officially retired from competing, but that doesn't mean the USA track legend's done running ... in fact, the Olympic gold medalist is currently perfecting his 40-yard dash, and believes he can run a blistering 4.19 seconds!

"The project is Project 40. I ran a 4.2 yesterday, first day of practice," Gatlin told Michael Babcock on the "TMZ Sports" TV show (airs weekdays on FS1).

FYI, the fastest 40 ever electronically timed at the NFL Combine was 4.22 by John Ross in 2017. Chris Johnson holds the second-best time at 4.24.

Justin believes he can beat that time by a substantial margin.

"I'm thinking a 4.19. I definitely can dip under the 4.2s, for sure!" Gatlin said confidently.

Ultimately, Gatlin wants to train athletes to be quicker on the field or court.

"I've been training since I've left the world of track and field and I have an idea that I wanna be able to do speed agility training or professional athletes, being football, baseball, basketball, that's why we're here."

Justin says they're often a debate about who's faster ... and while he does want to rep for the track athletes, he also wants to help out other pros in different sports.

"There's a lot of talk about track and field athletes and football players, who's faster and I said you know what, this is what we work on. We work on speed constantly and I wanna show the world that we understand speed, we're the king of speed but I also wanna teach speed to other athletes that want [to learn.]"

Justin sure sounds like someone who still has the competitive juices flowing ... so we asked him if there was a chance he could make a comeback competitively, despite being 41 years old.

"Let's say if I get myself back into shape and say 'Hey, you know what? I wanna get back in track and field,' especially Olympic year coming up, it's not far-fetched."

"I've been away from the track, what, I retired in 2021? I'm not that far off. I think that if I wanna come back, I can make that Olympic team for sure."

There's more with Gatlin ... including whether he'd be down to race Tyreek Hill -- "Cheetah" -- who most fans believe to be the fastest player in the NFL.

So, would Justin race Cheetah? Damn straight.

"I think [Tyreek's] a remarkable athlete. He has a big background in track and field. He grew up running track and field. He still uses track and field workouts to make sure his speed on the football field is superior."

Gatlin continued ...  "And when it comes to me racing Tyreek, holla at me in about eight weeks. I'll be ready for you, man. If you want that, I can give you that smoke.

We also talked to Justin about Noah Lyles ... both his epic performance at World's and his shading of NBA "world champions!"

Kenneth Gainwell's feet are going to be looking out of this (Astro)world when the Eagles take the field next week ... 'cause the tailback just copped some awesome Travis Scott-inspired cleats for Philadelphia's opener!!

TMZ Sports has learned the footballer reached out to cleat master Rodney Jackson to get some heat for the Birds' Week 1 game against the Patriots ... asking for some spikes that resembled the exclusive Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 Low OG Olive F&F pair that pays homage to Scott's new album, "Utopia."

Of course, Jackson -- who's been in the custom cleats business since 2015 -- didn't take long to deliver the goods ... whipping up an amazing pair in about three and a half weeks.

You can see the spikes look exactly like the AJ1 x Travis Scotts ... all the way down to the "Utopia" branding on the back -- and Jackson said he was super happy with how they came out.

"I wanted to capture every detail of the shoe and the right leather texture," Jackson tells us.

Gainwell -- a former fifth-round pick out of Memphis -- will have a big opportunity to show them off against New England ... he's expected to be a workhorse for Philly following the departure of last year's starter, Miles Sanders.

It was complete chaos at the scene just seconds after Robert Quinn allegedly crashed his truck into four cars in a South Carolina neighborhood ... with one woman screaming at the ex-NFL star, claiming he had hit her.

The alleged incident all unfolded on Aug. 15 in Summerville ... when, according to a 911 call obtained by TMZ Sports, Quinn and a woman were arguing about the vehicles he had been accused of running into.

You can hear in the background of the police audio ... a woman was yelling at a man appearing to be Quinn, demanding he get off her property.

When dispatch asked what was going on ... the caller said, "My mom's talking to the guy that did it and he's like a little too close to her" -- but a short time later, things seemed to turn violent.

In the background of the call, a woman can be heard shouting, "You just hit me!" -- with dispatch quickly adding, "Male just hit the complainant's mother."

Despite the apparent physical confrontation, you can hear in the audio a verbal one still continued, with Quinn seemingly offering to buy the woman two new cars.

"Is he offering to buy your mom two cars?" dispatch asked the caller.

"He just totaled two of our cars just now," the caller responded. "And my neighbor's car, and my other neighbor's car. He just hit four cars."

The caller then added, "He pushed my mom in the head, he hit her in the head."

Later, the caller said of Quinn ... "He's acting like he's drunk. I think he's been drinking or something else."

Cops eventually arrived on the scene ... but, according to police documents, officers say the ex-Dallas Cowboys pass rusher bolted from the area before they could question him. They added that following a search of Quinn's wrecked vehicle, they discovered a "partially empty bottle" of Crown Royal Apple whiskey on the passenger side floorboard.

Ultimately, Quinn -- a current free agent -- turned himself in later in the week... and was hit with seven total charges stemming from the incident -- including hit-and-run and assault.

Kim Zolciak's estranged husband Kroy Biermann has filed new docs in their ongoing divorce saga ... and now he's asking the judge for permission to sell their Georgia home, ASAP.

According to the docs, obtained by TMZ, Kroy's asking for an emergency hearing to authorize selling the $3 million family pad, citing their serious financial troubles.

The sale of the house -- where he says they've lived for their entire marriage -- could help cover what Kroy describes as "significant debt" they've built up over the years. He even mentions how he sold some of his stuff just to cobble together mortgage payments, and avoid a foreclosure auction earlier this year.

Kroy, through his lawyer, Marlys A. Bergstrom, says despite the "financial devastation" Kim brought to their family, he continued to make monthly payments on the place to hold off the auction ... but says it was a struggle every month.

The former NFL player claims he sold some of his designer backpacks, and other personal items to help come up with the dough, and even begged Kim to sell her purses -- something he says she refused to do.

Well, he admits she did sell some things, but he adds this dig ... "Ironically, she has been selling purses, hers and her daughters' and other high end fashion items including her infamous wigs. However, none of the funds garnered from the sale of these items have gone towards the mortgage, or any other bills."