NFL

Hailee Steinfeld and Josh Allen still appear to be a thing ... 'cause the actress was spotted jetting from L.A. to Buffalo on Saturday just minutes after the QB beat the Chargers at SoFi Stadium.

It's unclear if the "Starving" singer -- who wore a black hoodie and a mask during her airport travels -- was in attendance for Allen's win over the Bolts while in the City of Angels, but given the time, date and place of her flight to New York ... it seems likely.

Of course, that would appear to mean she and Allen are still very much dating -- this after they were first seen together in the spring.

You'll recall, the two had a bit of a romantic dinner date in May that was captured on camera -- and a few weeks later, they were seen packing on the PDA while vacationing in Mexico.

The couple has somehow avoided much of the public eye since -- though her flight over the weekend sure appears to indicate they're still going strong.

Allen was previously in a long-term relationship with Brittany Williams ... but they broke up following his 2022 season. Steinfeld, meanwhile, had dated Niall Horan in the past, though they split in 2018.

Jaire Alexander's eyebrow-raising actions during Sunday's pregame ceremonies have just cost him dearly ... because the Packers revealed Wednesday they're suspending him for the debacle.

If you missed it, the Green Bay cornerback ruffled some serious feathers over the weekend when he nearly blew the coin toss for his team just prior to its tilt with the Panthers in Carolina.

Alexander unexpectedly joined the Packers' captains at midfield ... called tails, and when he told the refs he wanted to start the game on defense -- it almost cost the Pack a possession.

Thankfully for Alexander and Green Bay, the snafu got cleared up and the team went on to win 33-30 ... but on Wednesday, the Packers made it clear they're furious over the situation.

General manager Brian Gutekunst said the 26-year-old has been banned one game for the incident ... adding in a statement, "Jaire's actions prior to the game in Carolina led us to take this step."

"As an organization, we have an expectation that everyone puts the team first."

Gutekunst also said the team and Alexander had a conversation about the situation Wednesday morning and the org. "fully" expects him "to learn from this as we move forward together."

Alexander has not publicly commented since the ban was announced -- though in a postgame meeting with reporters Sunday, he didn't show much remorse for his actions ... appearing to say he took it upon himself to go out with the captains since the Packers were playing in his hometown of Charlotte.

Alexander is widely regarded as one of the best young corners in the game -- he's made two Pro Bowls in his six-year career -- although injuries have sidelined him for most of this season.

Russell Wilson has been sidelined in Denver ... the Broncos are benching the future Hall of Famer.

Head coach Sean Payton made the decision this week, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter, informing his team Wednesday that backup Jarrett Stidham will now be the starting signal-caller going forward.

Wilson has been largely a disappointment since Denver traded a bevy of picks and players for him prior to the 2022 season ... but, per Schefter, the move also has a lot to do with the 35-year-old's contract.

Schefter reported Wednesday that leaving Wilson on the bench will ensure he won't get injured -- and therefore $37 million of his contract will not become guaranteed in 2024.

The former Super Bowl champ had arrived in Colorado with huge expectations, but he was one of the worst QBs in the NFL in '22 -- throwing just 16 TD passes to 11 interceptions.

His 2023 campaign, however, had seen far more ups -- he's thrown for 26 TDs and just 8 INTs this season -- but the Broncos are still just 7-8 ... and have lost three of their last four.

Complicating matters further for Wilson, Payton was seen screaming at him on the sidelines during Denver's blowout loss to Detroit earlier this month.

Los fans de Taylor Swift están viendo entrelíneas, y más de lo habitual, porque Travis Kelce fue visto con un gran moretón rojo en el cuello que parece ser un gran chupón, ¡al menos para los Swifties!

Esta es la prueba A: El jugador de los Chiefs tenía una marca roja en el cuello, durante el partido de los Chiefs contra los Patriots el pasado fin de semana. Sí, algunos fans con ojos de águila aún están mirando las fotos del partido del 17 de diciembre cuando descubrieron lo que parecía ser la marca de amor de Taylor en su hombre.

Como se pueden imaginar, se están volviendo locos con el tema. Por supuesto, Taylor estaba en las gradas en el partido de los Chiefs/Pats con su padre Scott, que suele ser un fan de los Eagles, pero se puso la camiseta de los Chiefs para mostrar su apoyo.

Ahora, dejando a los Swifties a un lado -al menos por un momento, pandilla-, hay que decir que esa marca en el cuello de Travis podría ser fácilmente un pelo encarnado o una cicatriz de afeitado. Sí, somos los aguafiestas.

Sea lo que sea, el moretón de Travis parecía haber desaparecido para el partido de los Chiefs el día de Navidad contra los Raiders.

Taylor Swift's fans are seeing red -- more than usual -- because Travis Kelce was spotted with a big ol' red mark on his neck that's giving hickey in a big way ... at least to Swifties!

We present Exhibit A: The Chiefs' tight end was all red-neck'd, in a good way, during the Chiefs' game against the Patriots last weekend. Yes, some fans eagle-eyed fans were still looking at pics from the Dec. 17 game when they discovered what they think is Taylor's love mark on her man.

As you can imagine, they're going nuts over it. Of course, Taylor was in the stands at the Chiefs/Pats game with her dad, Scott -- who is usually an Eagles fan, but threw on some Chiefs garb to show support.

Now, Swifties aside -- just for a moment, gang -- and we have to say that mark on Trav's neck could easily be an ingrown hair or a shaving scar. Yes, we're the wet blanket.

Whatever it was ... the hickey-esque thingy seemed to be gone in time for the Chiefs game on Christmas day game against the Raiders.

NFL announcer Tony Romo may need some cue cards to remember the relationship status of Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce – 'cause he thinks they're married!!!

Here's what happened ... Romo was doing the play by play with fellow commentator, Jim Nantz, during the Kansas City Chiefs' 20-14 loss to the Las Vegas Raiders on Christmas Day. Taylor was back in her VIP suite for the game at Arrowhead Stadium cheering on Travis – her boyfriend, of course, and the Chief's tight end.

But, Romo got it all twisted when Taylor's image flashed on the TV screen, accidentally calling her Travis' WIFE!!

Check out the video posted on Instagram ... Taylor, wearing a Santa hat with Travis' number "87" on it, stands up to root for her beefy lover on the field.

Romo then blows it, but soon catches himself and corrects his mistake, saying, “And his wife loves it, I mean, girlfriend.”

Nantz doesn't let Romo off the hook, pointing out, “You’ve been down this road before."

Unfortunately, Romo has. While calling the Chiefs game against the Buffalo Bills last week -- Romo made the same boo-boo.

Once again, the camera panned on Taylor clapping in the audience when Romo said, "As you see, Kelce’s wife, Taylor Swift, in the audience." He caught his blunder there, too, quickly adding, "I'm sorry. Girlfriend!"

Another broadcaster quipped, "Not yet," while chuckling at Romo's gaffe.

Travis Kelce would be awwwweeeeesoooome in the squared-circle ... so says WWE Superstar The Miz, who tells TMZ Sports he'd love to see the Kansas City Chiefs superstar -- AND his brother, Jason -- take their talents to wrestling!!

Remember, we spoke with Travis back in April about possibly seeing him follow fellow tight end greats like Rob Gronkowski and George Kittle by getting into wrasslin' ... and he said he's already talked to Miz about making it happen.

Naturally, we had to ask Mike all about it when we caught up with him at LAX this week ... and while it doesn't sound like anything concrete just yet, it's clear he's put a lot of thought into it.

Miz -- who admitted he's blown up Travis' DMs over the subject -- said it would be perfect to see the Kelce bros team up for a special appearance at WrestleMania ... especially considering it'll be in Philadelphia, a city Jason is VERY familiar with.

Of course, Miz knows firsthand what it's like to go up against NFL stars -- he took on both Kittle and Pat McAfee at the same time at SoFi Stadium earlier this year.

Miz also feels like WWE could see a similar boost as Roger Goodell's org. if it happens ... thanks to the Taylor Swift effect.

12:04 PM PT -- Taylor was seen cheering on Travis and co. from her luxury box, and it looks like Santa was by her side the entire time. Word is, that's her broski, Austin ... so it's a whole family affair.

No sign of Travis' mom, Donna, here ... but they're saying his dad Ed is in attendance. It also looks like the fans brought out their best Swiftmas posters for the game as well, per usual.

Taylor Swift is back in the building to watch Travis Kelce -- only this time, a couple things are different ... it's Christmas, and her mama is there too for the very first time.

Big day in Kansas City ... 'cause Taylor could be seen cruising through Arrowhead Stadium ahead of kickoff like she normally does -- but on Monday morning, Andrea Swift was right next to her -- riding in the front passenger seat of a private golf cart driving them around.

Taylor was in it too, but she was in the back ... and both of them waved at people like they were in a parade as they passed cheerful onlookers. Oh, and Santa was there too!

Like we said, Andrea's never been to one of Travis' games with Taylor (that we're aware of anyway) and we honestly haven't seen much of her during T-Swift's romance with the Chiefs tight end. We have seen her dad, Scott, a handful of times ... but no Mama Bear 'til now.

Unclear why that might be the case, but in case it wasn't clear already -- Taylor's parents are divorced ... so that's why Andrea isn't usually right by Scott's side at these sorta outings.

Today, however, it looks like they'll be a united family in front of cameras -- 'cause Scott is said to be there as well ... and we're sure to see them soon enough here in the suite.

This will be the 8th game of Travis' that Taylor's attended ... she's made it a regular thing this season, and her appearances are always memorable -- especially as she gets more into it.

Remember, she's on a break from work at the moment ... and doesn't have to hit the stage again until February when she'll fly to Tokyo for more 'Eras' shows. In the meantime, she's been spending a lot of time with Travis ... including the holidays, minus Thanksgiving.

It's shaped up to be quite a year for her, to say the least. Here's to a couple more games to finish 2023!

Kroy Biermann is highlighting his holiday by snubbing his estranged wife, Kim Zolciak ... and her exclusion is jarring.

The retired NFL'er threw up a snap of him and his 4 kids with KZ -- Kroy Jr., Kash, Kaia and Kane -- with Papa Bear standing proudly behind them and grinning from ear to ear. His caption was also pretty telling on how he's feeling about his marriage/divorce right now.

He wrote, "Merry Christmas from the Biermann’s!!🎄 (-2 😢) I didn’t get a picture of the family enjoying @arianabiermann ‘s church service and I had this taken after @briellebiermann and Billy had departed in the direction of their car as we were almost outside from our service."

KB added, "I couldn’t be a more proud father of you 2 and the littles! ❤️ Got to do better at remembering to capture more pictures." Interesting ... he noted Brielle and Ariana here -- who are actually Kim's biological daughters -- but not their mother.

BTW, no posts from Kim herself ... she hasn't thrown anything up since mid-December.

This marks just the latest up-and-down moment for them ... for now, it seems like Kim and Kroy are on the outs -- this after sending signals of reconciliation just a month ago. Of course, they also had a huge blowout fight that required the cops to called over.

The NFL is gifting fans with a slate of games this Christmas ... and what better way to celebrate the holiday than by shining the spotlight on some wives and girlfriends of the league's biggest stars!!

Of course, all eyes will be on the lookout for Travis Kelce's lady, Taylor Swift, when the Chiefs host the Raiders at Arrowhead Stadium ... and if she shows up, expect her to be screaming expletives from a suite with Brittany Mahomes, Patrick's ride-or-die wife.

Maxx Crosby's wife, Rachel, and Davante Adams' lady, Devanne, will be hoping those new friends go home upset ... as they'll be pulling for their boys from Las Vegas.

Following the AFC West rivalry game, the Giants and Eagles will have a divisional matchup of their own ... and both teams are coming off a loss.

Darren Waller's wife, Kelsey Plum, is all about winning, though -- she just captured her 2nd consecutive WNBA Finals with the Las Vegas Aces in October ... so maybe she can give some victory vibes to her tight end hubby.

Sterling Shepard's girlfriend, Carolyn, will most likely be at the game, too ... as this will be their first Christmas as a couple.

Jason Kelce's wife, Kylie will be singing "Fly Eagles Fly" before singing Christmas carols together later in the night ... after all, the All-Pro center has his own holiday EP with fellow teammates!!

The last game of Christmas Day -- Ravens and 49ers -- is chock full of supportive WAGs ... including Jadeveon Clowney's girlfriend, production makeup artist Nanaj Re ... and safety Kyle Hamilton's high school sweetheart, Reese Damm.

On the other side, George Kittle's ride-or-die, Claire, is always cheering on her man ... and Fred Warner's wife Sydney, who is expecting their first child in March, will be rootin' for Niner Gang as well.

And last but not least, Christian McCaffrey's fiancée, Olivia Culpo, could potentially be present for the contest, too ... which would certainly be a nice present for the running back.

Calvin Johnson says it's no surprise to him that Roman Reigns has become one of the most legendary WWE Superstars of all time ... telling TMZ Sports the dude was a total "badass" at Georgia Tech.

Believe it or not, the guys were actually teammates for the Yellow Jackets' football team in the mid-2000s ... and Johnson says he knew right away that Reigns had mega-star potential.

"He was just always like a badass," the Hall of Fame wide receiver explained. "He didn't say much, but when he did say something, you listened."

Reigns went by his real name, Joe Anoa'i, when he was playing defensive line at the time ... and he performed so well alongside Johnson, many believed he had a bright future in the NFL.

His battle with cancer derailed those aspirations, however -- but Johnson said that all clearly ended up being "a blessing in disguise" for him ... as he's now poised to break numerous records in the squared circle.

"My man is killing it out here," Johnson said.

Ryan Clark is weighing into all the discourse that's gone on since Jonathan Owens said he was a catch for Simone Biles -- not the other way around -- by saying ... ease up, folks.

The ex-Steelers safety recorded a video addressing the backlash Owens is facing in the wake of an interview he did on RC's pod last week ... in which he described how he first met Simone, how they got together, and who he thought was the lucky one in the relationship.

It came off a little ineloquent at the time, but essentially ... he said he thought he was a catch for Simone -- and that he didn't necessarily "pull" her, but rather ... she pulled him.

JO also confessed he didn't know who Simone was when they matched on an app -- apparently, he wasn't tuned in to her Olympic run -- and says she made the first move.

BTW, as Owens was saying this to Clark and his podcast cohosts -- SB herself was in the room, and she didn't even flinch. The Internet, on the other hand, was up in arms over his comments ... as they felt he was being disrespectful for suggesting he was the prize here.

Simone and Jonathan have each addressed the heat he's catching ... and they both seem to be over it, and not nearly as mad as Twitter was when they first caught wind of this.

Now, Ryan himself is speaking up ... and he's got words for the collectively outraged.

Peyton Manning tuvo que experimentar la "clásica bienvenida de Filadelfia" como Santa Claus, porque después de ponerse el traje rojo fue bombardeado divertidamente con bolas de nieve de Ricky Watters y Matt Millen!

El QB del Salón de la Fama se convirtió en el blanco fácil en el episodio navideño del programa "Peyton's Places" en ESPN, donde se lo ve montando un camión de bomberos dentro del Lincoln Financial Field antes del partido de Navidad de los Eagles.

Watters, que jugó de running back para Philly durante dos temporadas, y Millen, ex linebacker y ejecutivo de la NFL, están en las gradas abucheando a Manning y luego empiezan a bombardearlo con bolas de nieve.

"¡Boo! ¡Eres un pésimo Santa!" Gritó Millen mientras lanzaba sus bolas a Peyton.

Por supuesto, este es un remake del partido de los Vikings vs. los Eagles de 1968 en Navidad, en el que los aficionados de Filadelfia empezaron a lanzar bolas de nieve a Papá Noel durante el espectáculo del descanso debido a la mala actuación y temporada de su equipo.

El tipo que se disfrazó de Papá Noel, Frank Olivo, que entonces tenía 20 años, dice que recibió más de 100 bolas de nieve durante su aparición.

Eso sí, Olivo fue elegido de entre las gradas para interpretar el papel por el director de animación de los Eagles, ya que una tormenta de nieve la noche anterior impidió que el actor original de Papá Noel llegara al partido.

Peyton Manning got to experience the "classic Philly welcome" as Santa Claus ... 'cause after he put on the red suit, he was hilariously pelted with snowballs from Ricky Watters -- and Matt Millen!

The Hall of Fame QB became the sitting duck for the holiday episode of "Peyton's Places" show on ESPN, where he's riding a firetruck inside the Lincoln Financial Field ahead of the Eagles' Christmas game.

Watters -- who played running back for Philly for two seasons -- and Millen, a former linebacker and executive in the NFL, are in the stands booing Manning ... and start hitting him with snowballs.

"Boo!! You're a lousy Santa Claus!" Millen yelled while throwing bombers at Peyton.

Of course, this is a remake of the 1968 Vikings vs. Eagles game on Christmas ... where the Philly fans started throwing snowballs at Santa Claus during the halftime show due to their team's poor performance and season.

The guy who dressed up as Santa, then 20-year-old Frank Olivo, says he was hit with more than 100 snowballs during his appearance.

Mind you, Olivo was picked out from the stands to play the role by the Eagles entertainer director, since a snowstorm the previous night kept the original Santa actor from getting to the game.

Move over Santa Claus, it's all about Santa Carr -- 'cause New Orleans Saints quarterback Derek Carr showed his receivers some major love for the holidays ... by gifting them Rolex watches and diamond chains!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the four-time Pro Bowler wanted to do something super special for his wideouts this season as a sign of appreciation, so he hit up Al the Jeweler of Labelle Jewelry in Totowa, NJ to make some custom pieces.

We're told Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed received the iced-out time pieces ... and others in the crew received chains.

Carr didn't forget about his guy Michael Thomas ... we're told he'll have a present, too -- as soon as the two get in touch.

Carr is a loyal customer of Al's -- as we previously reported, the quarterback also went to him to make custom number pendants for Maxx Crosby and Davante Adams before he left the Raiders earlier this year.

Carolina Panthers fans need to take a deep breath and relax ... because despite the rough rookie season for Bryce Young, Warren Moon tells TMZ Sports he's not ready to call the QB a bust just yet.

In fact, the Hall of Famer said earlier this week he still believes the former Heisman Trophy winner is "going to be a really good quarterback in this league."

"I'm still optimistic," the ex-signal-caller said.

Moon, though, did say Young's future will almost certainly hinge on whether or not Carolina's front office can improve the talent around him.

"They do not have a really good offense," Moon said. "He doesn't have a lot of weapons to work with on the outside, his offensive line is very average, and he's a smaller guy so he needs a little bit more protection."

Through his first 13 games, Young has thrown nine interceptions to just nine touchdowns. His quarterback rating, meanwhile, is a mere 72.2.

Still, Moon tells us "as long as he hasn't lost his confidence, I think he'll be fine going into next year" if the Panthers' roster improves.