NFL

Russell Wilson isn't ready to give up on his NFL career after losing his starting job to a rookie -- the new-New York Giants backup met with the media for the first time after being named QB2 ... and he made it clear he's still got gas left in the tank.

Wilson, 36, spoke after practice on Wednesday ... days after he threw two interceptions and zero touchdowns in the Giants' 22-9 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs at MetLife Stadium on "Sunday Night Football."

The disappointing performance opened the door for Jaxson Dart ... who head coach Brian Daboll named the starter on Tuesday. Despite losing the gig, Russ isn't phased ... nor is he worried about his future.

Jacory Croskey-Merritt joined the TMZ Sports Live Stream on Tuesday ... and the Commanders star touched on a bunch of hot-button NFL topics -- including his fantasy football popularity!!

The rookie tailback sat down with Michael Babcock and Co. for the show -- which airs at 1 PM PT/4 PM ET Monday through Friday on the TMZ and TMZ Sports YouTube channels as well as other social media platforms -- and he talked ball for around 10 minutes.

He chatted about how he has "a chip on my shoulder" after going in the seventh round of April's draft, before he got into all the direct messages he's been receiving from fantasy football players looking to get roster advice.

Tom Brady is on the defensive against critics accusing him of having a "conflict of interest" with his Raiders ownership and Fox gig ... saying it's his duty to utilize his knowledge of the sport -- and anyone who doesn't see that is "paranoid and distrustful."

The legendary quarterback addressed the chatter in a newsletter on Wednesday ... when he spoke at length about the importance of doing one's job.

For him ... that means growing the game of football by sharing his experiences on Fox broadcasts while also assisting in bringing the Las Vegas Raiders back to relevance.

7:21 AM PT -- Cops tell TMZ Sports ... Rudi Johnson died by suicide in Florida just after midnight on Tuesday.

Former Cincinnati Bengals running back Rudi Johnson has died.

A family source for the ex-NFL star tells TMZ Sports ... he passed away this week.

Russell Wilson might have lost his job as the starting quarterback of the New York Giants on Tuesday, but that didn't stop him from making a bunch of kids' days -- he made a special visit to a local hospital to raise spirits for patients.

Wilson shared the photos from his trip to the Mount Sinai Kravis Children’s Hospital after the news broke Jaxson Dart would be taking over under center in the Big Apple ... while including the caption, "With god, nothing is impossible. Grateful for his healing power!!!"

Wilson's followers flooded the comments with support ... letting him know they still have his back no matter where he sits on the depth chart.

Deion Sanders says a routine activity like going to the bathroom was "the most excruciating pain I've ever felt in my life" after undergoing surgery ... detailing the hardest part of his bladder cancer battle.

The Hall of Famer and Colorado Buffaloes football coach sat down with Michael Strahan on "Good Morning America" to discuss his recent medical issues ... revealing doctors gave him two options after spotting the tumor during a scan.

Sanders said he had to either have his bladder removed or do 36 weeks of chemotherapy. The 58-year-old chose the procedure ... and admitted the recovery was agonizing.

Jason Kelce was once a finalist for the "Sexiest Man Alive" ... but did you know he's got some major sax appeal too?!?

The Philadelphia Eagles legend joined the Baltimore Ravens' famous marching band on Monday night ... and he showed he's got the skills to delight thousands with a saxophone.

The former NFL center was front and center in the band as he did a bit for his gig as an ESPN "Monday Night Football" analyst ... and he looked like he knew what he was doing as he belted out the "MNF" theme song.

Travis Kelce has had a rough month on the gridiron … first slapped with a $14,491 fine by the NFL for making an obscene gesture -- and now clashing with KC Chiefs head coach, Andy Reid.

The latest incident went down Sunday night, when the Chiefs were battling the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium ... and tensions flared in the second quarter.

Here’s what happened … Kelce caught a pass for minus 2 yards, setting up 40-yard field goal attempt that kicker Harrison Butker missed. Moments later, Kelce headed to the sideline, where Reid was already waiting.

Tom Brady strangely referenced dog abuse while on-air Sunday ... and animal lovers everywhere are outraged.

The NFL legend's bizarre comments came during the fourth quarter of the Chicago Bears' big victory over the Dallas Cowboys at Soldier Field ... just after George Pickens dropped a Dak Prescott pass that ended up as an interception.

Brady -- who was on the call for the Fox broadcast -- saw the Cowboys wideout slam his helmet in disgust ... and oddly compared it to hitting a pet.

Madison Beer is really embracing her new role as a WAG -- the singer hit the Los Angeles Chargers game on Sunday to support her new man, Justin Herbert!!

The "Yes Baby" singer was spotted sitting in the suites at SoFi Stadium as the Bolts squared off against the Denver Broncos ... and even though she wasn't wearing a No. 10 jersey, we all know who she was there to see.

Beer, 26, was clearly having a blast ... flashing a heart-hand gesture to the crowd and sharing an Instagram Story of a young LA fan flexing for the scoreboard.

There was a famous Taylor in the stands at the Chiefs game Sunday night -- and for a brief moment, the New York Giants had everyone believing it was Travis Kelce's fiancée.

The epic fakeout went down early in Kansas City's matchup with the G-Men at MetLife Stadium ... when the home team played Taylor Swift's song, "Welcome to New York," while panning through the crowd.

Most expected the payoff to be a shot of Swift in a luxury box ... but instead, the cam landed on a different Taylor -- Lawrence!!

The NFL's already entered its third week, and we wanna see if you can guess who this pro quarterback is!

We caught up with this athlete at a 2020 draft party before he started playing in the league and asked him about his desire to play with the elite, and he was really honest about being happy to suit up for any team that wanted him.

Eric Dickerson made it crystal clear this week he's no fan of the Cleveland Browns ... telling TMZ Sports he thinks "they're horrible" -- and he wishes Shedeur Sanders ended up elsewhere.

The Hall of Fame running back minced no words during a chat with us at LAX ... saying he can't stand that the Browns were the ones who ultimately picked the younger Sanders in April's NFL draft.

He told us Cleveland is "a bad football team" with a track record of messing up QBs ... and he admitted he's hoping the org. will eventually just let Shedeur go to another franchise.

Terry Bradshaw sees nothing wrong with Tom Brady balancing his role as a Fox broadcaster with his gig as a Raiders owner ... telling TMZ Sports it's just not a big deal to him.

Brady, of course, sparked a firestorm of sorts among NFL fans this week ... after he was seen in Las Vegas' coaching booth wearing a headset during the Raiders' "Monday Night Football" matchup with the Chargers.

Fans were even more up in arms about the scene when it was reported during the game that Brady had regular talks with offensive coordinator Chip Kelly about game plans.

Shaquil Barrett is keepin' his phone within reach ... telling TMZ Sports if an NFL team calls about a comeback -- he'll be ready to answer!!

The 32-year-old said this week he's not closing the door on his football career ... insisting he "can give it one more good year."

It's been a while, of course, since Barrett's logged significant snaps -- the last time he played in multiple games in a season was 2023 -- but he's adamant he can still help a pass rush-needy franchise somewhere.

1:22 PM PT -- TMZ Sports has obtained Jadeveon Clowney's mug shot.

We've also gotten a hold of the police report related to the NFL star's arrest ... and it states Clowney was taken into custody after he got into a dispute while trying to find parking near a high school football game.

The docs state Clowney argued with a cop while searching for a spot -- and refused to provide an ID.

"Reporting officer requested Clowney's identification at least twice during the incident which Clowney repeatedly refused to provide," police wrote in the docs. "Reporting officer advised Clowney that he was under arrest for trespassing and failure to ID."

Clowney, meanwhile, addressed the incident with Dallas Cowboys media members on Friday and said he's ready to "move on from it."

Jadeveon Clowney was arrested last week ... just a couple days before he signed a contract to play for the Dallas Cowboys.