Super Bowl

Danica Patrick loses again ... this time, GoDaddy.com is PULLING their Super Bowl ad featuring the NASCAR driver over OUTRAGE from animal lovers.

The commercial -- called "Lost Dog" -- shows a puppy that falls out of a truck ... and then overcomes all odds to find its way back home.

Problem is, when the little guy returns home ... he finds out the owner used GoDaddy to set up a website to sell the dog to a new owner.

Needless to say, people are PISSED -- with some animal rights groups saying the commercial supports puppy mills and other "inhumane breeding" practices. PETA went nuts over it ... saying, "anyone who sells a dog online is a callous jerk."

GoDaddy's CEO Blake Irving got the message loud and clear ... and tweeted, "What should have been a fun and funny ad clearly missed the mark and we will not air it."

GoDaddy says it will still use it's 30 second Super Bowl slot (after all, they paid $4 mil for it) ... though so far, it's unclear what will run in its place.

Marshawn Lynch is being hammered with questions at Super Bowl media day.

His answer to all of them?

"I'm just here so I won't get fined."

Marshawn sat in front of the microphones sporting his sunglasses and a backpack -- and repeated over and over again, "Hey, I'm just here so I don't get fined."

He's said it at least 20 times already.

As you probably know, the NFL just fined Lynch $20k for grabbing his crotch during a TD celebration in the NFC championship game.

It's not the fact it costs $4 MILLION for 30 seconds, "Shark Tank" star Kevin O'Leary tells TMZ Sports there's another big problem when it comes to Super Bowl advertising.

Mr. Wonderful hit up Craig's in L.A. for dinner Monday -- when he explained why spending the money could be a great investment for the right company ... just not for him.

Eli Manning claims he doesn't give a crap about the pressure in his footballs -- and says the fact that Tom Brady obsesses over it seems incredibly strange to him ... and TMZ Sports has the footage.

The 2-time Super Bowl champ was a guest speaker at a private function at the New York Athletic Club last week when he was asked for his opinion on Deflate-Gate.

"I never worried really much about the inflation," Manning said ... "I thought it was kind of strange that [Tom] Brady knew he liked his ball at 12.5 pounds of pressure in the ball."

"That's the minimum number you can have ... seems kind of strange to me."

But get this, Manning says he's not convinced the pressure in the ball "is that big of a deal" ... and claims the Brady scandal is the first he's ever heard of an issue with inflation.

Manning -- who seems to be the bane of New England's existence when it comes to Super Bowls -- also told the crowd what he thinks could be the key to another Seattle victory.

The NFL has zeroed in on a New England Patriots locker room attendant who might be the cuplrit behind the deflated football scandal ... this according to a new report.

According to Jay Glazer and FOX Sports, surveillance video allegedly shows the attendant taking footballs from the official's locker room and going into another room at Gillette Stadium before bringing them to the field.

The attendant in question has already been interviewed by the league, according to Glazer. The NFL is trying to determine if any wrongdoing occurred.

T.O.'s callin' B.S. on T.B.

It's clear, the "Celebrity Apprentice" ain't buyin' Tom Brady's excuse that he had no idea his footballs were under-inflated during the AFC Championship game earlier this month.

Terrell Owens -- who played 15 seasons in the NFL -- told us it's "obvious" when the ball isn't pumped up to the league standard ... especially for a guy who has as much experience as Brady.

Only one team of dogs will win the eleventh annual Puppy Bowl ... but they'll all have to poop at some point -- and Animal Planet has their cute butts covered.

This year's event will feature 85 pups, 21 kittens and 5 Nigerian Dwarf goats (the cheerleaders) -- and producers prepared by purchasing 315 poop bags ... as well 1,200 puppy pads.

The animals will also have their own personal assistants -- 65 puppy escorts and 50 volunteers -- plus they've got a whole lot of food on deck.

Halftime performer Katty Furry got the real celebrity treatment though ... her outfit was crafted by a famous pet designer whose made expensive outfits for Paris Hilton and other celebs. They also extended an invite to Katy Perry to their pre-game party.

Tom Brady had a message Thursday -- he doesn't screw around when it comes to his balls.

But we do ... which is why TMZ Sports proudly presents the Tom Brady Deflate-Gate Remix.

C'mon, you saw the news conference -- he was practically beggin' for someone to put this to a beat.

Enjoy!

Charlotte McKinney's Super Bowl commercial for Carl's Jr. is awesome for sure ... although just about everyone is calling BS on her testimonial, because how can THAT chick eat a big fat burger?

McKinney was out Thursday at Matsuhisa in Beverly Hills (the exact opposite of Carl's Jr) where it seemed the buxom blonde had a little sake with dinner. Or a lot.

Anyway when it came time to ask if she's a fan of Carl's ... she stayed on message like a pro.

Kate Upton, you've got a real challenger to your throne.

So, Richard Sherman and a llama walk into a bar ...

Actually, it was a studio ... and one of them launched into a expletive-laced rant against Bill Belichick, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, in general -- kicking off Super Bowl smack talking season.

The whole thing is an ad for one of Sherman's sponsors -- but the Seattle Seahawks superstar might wanna take notes. The llama gets in a pretty good jab at Brady's favorite footwear.

Only thing missing? A shot at Brady's balls.

New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick says he "had no knowledge" of the deflate-gate scandal until Monday morning ... and has "no explanation" for why the team's balls were under-inflated.

Belichick says the team has complied with the NFL investigation into the AFC Championship game -- in which the Pats were using under-inflated balls, which some say are easier to throw and catch.

Bill told the media, "I have no explanation for what happened."

Belichick explained that giving his team an advantage by tampering with the footballs has "never been a priority for me."

In fact, Bill says ... for years he has made his team practice with crappy footballs -- "the balls we practice with are as bad as they can be" -- and has never even thought about deflating the footballs to make it easier for his team.

"I've told you all I know about the subject from my perspective ... I don't have an explanation."

The star of "Hardcore Pawn" is gunning for the famous game-winning football from the Seahawks vs. Packers game ... and he tells TMZ Sports he'll CRUSH the $20K offer that's already on the table.

Les Gold tells us ... the pigskin that Seattle WR Jermaine Kearse launched into the stands after catching the winning touchdown is an instant collectors item -- and he's dead set on getting it.

The man who caught the ball, Scott Shelton, has already received a $20,000 offer from a sports memorabilia dealership -- but Gold says he's ready and willing to smash that number.

"Whatever the highest offer, I'll offer a thousand more," Les tells us, "Offer 25K, and I'll offer 26K. That ball will be in my shop."

So, why's he so set on getting the ball? Les says it's an iconic piece that could double in value over the next few years.

Super Bowl XLIX isn't just the Seahawks vs. the Patriots ... it's Captain America vs Star-Lord ... because Chris Evans and Chris Pratt just laid down an EPIC bet on the big game in Arizona.

It all started Monday, the day after Evans' Patriots clinched a spot in the Super Bowl by deflating the Colts 45-7. He took to twitter to remind his fellow Marvel Super Hero that for the next two weeks they ain't buds.

"Well, well, well @prattprattpratt, looks like our teams are going into battle. For the next 2 weeks, you are not my friend, you are my enemy."

That's when Pratt -- a huge Seahawks fan -- laid down the gauntlet, proposing a bet whereby if the the Seahawks win, Evans has to fly to Seattle and visit a local children's hospital in full Captain America regalia, waving the 12th Man flag.

Well, Captain America never backs down from a fight ... and fired back, saying that if the Patriots win Star-Lord has to show up at his non-profit housing venture "Christopher's Haven," in a Tom Brady jersey.

C'mon ... this is pretty awesome.

Deflated balls or not ... the New England Patriots kicked Indy's ass this weekend -- and the amount of air in the pigskin had NOTHING to do with it ... so says ex-NFL QB Rodney Peete.

Peete -- who played in the NFL for 16 years -- says the whole "Deflate-Gate" scandal is being blown way out of proportion ... because despite the pressure in the footballs, "you still gotta play the game."

Rodney also says slightly deflated balls don't give a QB an advantage -- "You still gotta make the throws."

The New York/Boston rivalry just took an interesting turn -- with NY Giants co-owner Steve Tisch telling us he's rooting for Tom Brady to beat the Colts this weekend ... and eventually hoist the Lombardi Trophy.

Tisch was out at Craig's in L.A. last night -- when we asked if it's cool for NFL owners to root for another team after their own squad gets eliminated from the playoffs.

Steve says he's got some pretty good reasons for backing New England -- including the fact he's already beaten the Pats the last two times they faced 'em in the Big Game.

Another huge star is set to perform at the Super Bowl ... Idina Menzel has just announced she's on board ... and says she's honored to be following in the footsteps of legends like Whitney Houston.

The "Let It Go" singer just broke the news on Twitter ... saying:

"It was 1991 and I remember it well: Whitney sings the national anthem at the Super Bowl. Almost as glorious as her voice was her huge radiant smile. I am so humbled and honored to be asked this year."

Last year, the NFL gave the honor to opera singer Renee' Fleming ... who shocked gambler by knocking it out in 2 minutes and 3 seconds -- almost 20 seconds shorter than expected.