Super Bowl

Big news for the Kansas City Chiefs ... two players have been placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list over a "close contact" with someone who tested positive.

The players are wide receiver Demarcus Robinson and center Daniel Kilgore, according to Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.

Moments ago, Reid told the media he's confident the players will "work through it" -- but obviously could not guarantee they will play in Sunday's game against the Tampa Bay Bucs.

Kilgore started 4 games in 2020 and has played in 7 total. Robinson started 9 games in 2020 and played in all 16 regular-season games.

Both guys played in the AFC Championship game on January 24 against the Buffalo Bills -- with Robinson getting the starting nod at WR.

The way the NFL's COVID protocol works ... both players will be forced to quarantine for 5 days, which means no more practice for the rest of the week.

If they continue to test negative, there's a chance they can play in the Super Bowl -- but ESPN's Adam Schefter says at the moment their status is "in question."

Neither player has returned a positive COVID test at this point, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Obviously, the bigger concern is ... were any other players exposed?

We spoke with Chiefs superstar Tyreek Hill just a short while ago who told us the team had been clamping down on COVID protocols to prevent this exact situation.

The Kansas City Chiefs ain't messing around with COVID -- tightening up the safety protocol to make sure there are NO possible exposures before the Super Bowl.

... so says star wide receiver Tyreek Hill -- who tells TMZ Sports the team is even bringing in its own COVID-tested barbers to make sure no one catches the virus while getting cleaned up for Sunday.

And, if you're a Chiefs fan, you're loving every bit of this story.

"Yesterday my son had a basketball game and I usually go to his basketball game but since it's Super Bowl week, I didn't even go. We can't even do nothing!"

Hill added, "The Chiefs are bringing in barbers to the facility and getting 'em tested so like they are REALLY following protocol."

Yeah, it might suck to be on lockdown -- but it would suck WAY MORE if someone like Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce or Tyreek had to sit out the big game because of COVID. So, props to the Chiefs.

Hill also says that without the usual media insanity of Super Bowl week, the team has been focused on football ... and practices have been intense!

"I just feel like our practice intensity is definitely harder because I don't remember practicing this hard during this time last year!"

"But, this whole process has been fun for me and just being on this team with the brothers and just the coaches, the owner, the GM. It's been amazing! I wouldn't trade it for anything."

In addition to being one of the best WRs in the NFL, Hill is also a fashion designer  -- who just dropped a new high-end backpack with Prime Society.

"Trust me, it's a very luxurious bag," Hill says ... noting he'll be rockin' one on his way to the Super Bowl on Sunday.

The Weeknd's gearing up for his Super Bowl Halftime Show performance, but for now he's shining the spotlight on other stars -- frontline healthcare workers.

The singer's kicking off Super Bowl week and Black History Month by teaming up with Postmates in a campaign that highlights Black-owned restaurants ... and delivers meals to healthcare heroes.

The Weeknd's first stop is the AdventHealth Carrollwood medical facility in Tampa -- not far from Raymond James Stadium, where SB 55 will be played. He donated 150 meals from Mama's Southern Soul Food.

The local, independent, Black-owned restaurant is a staple in Tampa ... and it will be one of many featured at the top of the Postmates app in February.

Could Tom Brady REALLY play into the second half of his 40s?!

HELL YEAH -- so says the 43-year-old NFL superstar himself ... who just revealed he's "definitely" open to playing for several years to come, as long as he stays healthy.

Of course, TB12 has publicly shared his intentions of playing until age 45 ... which would make him the 3rd oldest QB in NFL history.

Now that he's playing in his 10th Super Bowl and hoping to win his 7th ring, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers signal-caller was asked if he'd consider pushing back his retirement ... and his answer is wild.

"Yeah, definitely," Brady told reporters Monday. "I would definitely consider that."

However, there are a few factors -- Brady says considering the nature of the sport, he'll have to re-evaluate how his body feels at the time ... and there "has to be 100% commitment from myself to keep doing it."

But, Brady says this is exactly what he's been working on with his personal trainer, Alex Guerrero, in order to stay competitive in his 40s. Ya know, pliability and stuff like that.

"(I've) been very fortunate over the years. Alex and I work really hard at making sure physically I can perform at my best, because you take different hits ... over the course of the year deal with different bumps and bruises, different injuries and so forth."

Brady is backing up Guerrero's talk from November 2019 ... when he claimed the QB was eying playing until 46 or 47.

"It's just gonna be me continuing to make that commitment to making it part of my year-round process to play football and continue my career so definitely."

BTW -- the Pro Football Hall of Fame says George Blanda was the oldest QB in NFL history at age 48.

Seems Danny Amendola still ain't too fond of his former New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick ... 'cause the WR just threw more shade at BB while praising Tom Brady.

Amendola -- who won 2 Super Bowls during his run with the Pats from 2013 through 2017 -- appeared on FS1's "First Things First" on Monday and explained why TB12 should get all of the credit for the famous "Patriot Way" mentality, instead of Belichick.

"When you see the ‘Patriot Way’ in the dictionary, it’s gonna have Tom Brady’s name next to it," Amendola said.

"None of those coaches threw any passes, none of those coaches caught any passes, none of those coaches made any tackles … they got guys in the right position 'cause they watch a lot of film and they spend all their time at the facility."

Amendola concluded, "But Tom Brady is the Patriot Way. And that’s the reason Tom Brady's in the Super Bowl right now and the Patriots aren’t."

It's not the first time Amendola has taken a shot at Belichick -- he compared the coach to an unlikeable high school principal during a Barstool Sports podcast in 2018.

Rob Gronkowski channeled his inner-Oprah to surprise 4 healthcare heroes -- YOU'RE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL, YOU'RE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL ... EVERYBODY'S GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL!!

The Tampa Bay Bucs superstar dropped in on 4 local healthcare heroes (via video chat) to deliver the good news ... that they've been hand selected by the team to attend the big game at Raymond James Stadium in person on Sunday.

The heroes include Mandy Mueske, Belinda Spahn, Woody Nixon, nurses who have been caring for COVID patients.

Heather Stegmeier is an infection control manager at AdventHealth -- who "educates and assists team members in obtaining and properly using personal protective equipment (PPE)."

And yeah, they're all STOKED about going to the game!!

"The first time the home team is the actual home team and I'm going to be there. I can't believe that," Woody Nixon said.

Mandy is pumped too -- especially since she's never been to a Bucs game before!

"I'm so excited! I watch games every Sunday. Go Bucs!"

The NFL says all 4 heroes will have completed their COVID vaccinations before being allowed into the stadium to watch Tom Brady and the Bucs take on Patrick Mahomes and the KC Chiefs.

Move over, Joe Exotic ... Roger Goodell is now Carole Baskin's biggest enemy -- 'cause the "Tiger King" star is absolutely appalled the NFL commish is allowing fans at Super Bowl LV.

"We are right now dealing with life or death on this planet," Baskin told USA Today, "and I think every one of us should be doing our part to stay home."

The NFL has given the green light for Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay to host 22,500 fans this Sunday when the Chiefs take on the Buccaneers.

And, the league says it's doing a very cool thing by honoring frontline healthcare workers with 7,500 of those tickets.

But, clearly, Baskin -- whose famous Big Cat Rescue facility is located just 12 miles from the NFL stadium -- thinks it's all VERY unnecessary regardless, given the pandemic is still forging on.

"I just think it’s irresponsible for people to be gathering in large groups, even though I understand they’re saying this is a much smaller group than they’ve ever had," Baskin said.

"But it doesn’t matter that it’s a smaller group. It’s way more people than should be exposed to each other for the purpose of watching a game."

Baskin added she's concerned having that many people in the Tampa area all at once for the Big Game will lead to a huge spike in positive COVID-19 cases.

"There’s no way if you bring 22,000 people to Tampa, from all over the place, that you’re not going to see that same kind of huge uptick in cases here," Baskin said.

"There’s nothing that would justify that sort of risk-taking."

Shaquille O'Neal thinks the Patriots did Tom Brady dirty at the end of his run in New England -- and he LOVES that TB12 stuck it to his old squad by taking his new team to the Super Bowl!

Shaq, who's hosting "The Shaq Bowl" next weekend, was raving about the 43-year-old QB's incredible career when he brought up Tom's exit from NE ... and he didn't exactly mince his words.

"The way he came in ... this is his 10th Super Bowl and [to] play with a franchise and then the franchise kinda [says], 'Oh, you're old, bye!' and he said 'Okay, you don't wanna take care of me, after all, I did for this city? Watch this!'

"[Then he] goes to another a city, promises them a Super Bowl and delivers??? Wooo!!!"

Tom's not the only Bucs star who left his team in messy fashion -- Shaq says he personally counseled Leonard Fournette after the Jacksonville Jaguars waived the running back in August.

"They did him kinda dirty in Jacksonville," Shaq says ... "I had a conversation with him. I told him to keep his head up. So, when he was going to Tampa I said, 'Hey, man, this is your chance to let everybody know they were wrong about you.'"

"He's been playing fabulous."

The Bucs have their work cut out for them -- with young superstar Patrick Mahomes leading the K.C. Chiefs ... and Shaq can't wait for the matchup!

"This is what I like to see in championship games -- the old versus the new. Is it gonna be the old guy to continue to dominate? Or will the young guy finally come in to say, 'Hey, I know you're Tom Brady but this is my time to shine?!'"

"I used to watch these type of karate movies growing up because at some point, the student must kill the master to become the master."

In the meantime, Shaq's keeping busy -- running his own Super Bowl pre-game show called, "The Shaq Bowl" ... featuring stars like Tim Tebow, Ezekiel Elliott, Diplo, The Miz, Anthony Anderson, Nelly, Offset and more competing in various crazy events at a custom-built Shaq Bowl stadium in Tampa on Feb. 7.

Tom Brady is getting a pat on the back from one of the Buccaneers' greatest ever ... with Derrick Brooks praising the hell out of the QB for helping Tampa Bay on its Super Bowl run!

TMZ Sports spoke with the legendary Bucs linebacker this week ... and the guy told us straight-up he's been in awe of what Brady's been able to do for TB this season.

"You're talking about a man that's going to his 10th Super Bowl but still treating it as his first in terms of the words he's used, the preparation that he's using going into it and leading this team," Brooks said.

"It's something that I, honestly, you learn to appreciate as a fan of the game and even as someone who's played the game at a high level, I still say that I can appreciate that."

Derrick says Tom's ability to stay calm and poised when the Bucs struggled at times this year really helped elevate the squad ... telling us, "Tom's presence and his experience has definitely meant a difference."

Don't get it twisted, though ... Derrick says for as good as Tom's been this season -- he's still jacked that EVERYONE on the team played their role well enough to advance this far in the postseason.

By the way, Derrick has been a key piece in preparing Tampa Bay for its role as Super Bowl host city this year ... and he tells us it's been a hell of an experience trying to plan the event in the middle of a pandemic.

If you needed a reminder of how excited the people of Tampa are to be back in the Super Bowl after almost 20 years, take a look at how they rang in the week before kickoff.

A pirate ship in downtown was lit up Friday night with fireworks and a light show on the City's riverfront in Julian B. Lane Park -- where folks gathered for the "Super Bowl Experience" ... a makeshift amusement park with games and attractions fans can enjoy ahead of SB LV.

The ship's decked out with all the NFL team flags, but Tampa Bay and Kansas City -- who are facing off on the gridiron -- were the ones that stuck out most. The vessel will stay illuminated nightly, so people can come back and watch if they missed it the first time around.

Oh, and did we mention the Lombardi Trophy sits aboard too -- yeah that's there ... so pretty neat for football aficionados in general.

Unfortunately, tickets for this thing sold out on NFL's OnePass app -- but apparently, there's another park nearby where you can still get a taste of the fun ... they say there's gonna be DJs, food vendors and other not-as-cool-but-still-kinda-cool things at Curtis Hixon Park.

As we reported ... the Bucs haven't been in the Super Bowl since 2002. Now, almost a full two decades later, they're back -- all thanks to Tom Brady, who came over from the Pats.

Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs will have some real-life heroes cheering them on in Tampa next week ... with the team inviting a group of local healthcare workers to attend Super Bowl LV!!!

The reigning champs announced Friday they have hand-selected their guests for the big game on Feb. 7 ... as a "thank you" to the workers for their commitment to fighting the COVID-19 pandemic over the past year.

Chiefs president Mark Donovan spoke about the gesture on Friday ... saying, "We are very excited to invite healthcare workers from Chiefs Kingdom, including a number of individuals from our official healthcare provider, The University of Kansas Health System, to be our Super Bowl guests in Tampa this year."

"These individuals, like so many healthcare workers throughout Chiefs Kingdom and beyond, have given and sacrificed a lot during the ongoing pandemic."

The group will be part of 7,500 vaccinated healthcare workers who have been invited to attend the Super Bowl by the NFL ... and among the 22,000 total attendees next week.

"Inviting them as our guests is one way we can thank them for everything they have done for the residents of Kansas City."

Donovan continued ... "It's been an unusual year and season, but it's incredibly special for us to make it to back-to-back Super Bowls and have Kansas City healthcare workers there as we try to finish the job and run it back in Tampa."

Of course, the league is trying like hell to make sure the Super Bowl is as safe of an experience as possible -- including practicing social distancing, wearing face coverings, installing hand hygiene stations and more to prevent a super spread.

Think twice about getting the dip and callin' the bros for The Big Game ... L.A. county health officials are now warning people NOT to party for the Super Bowl, saying it could lead to the spread of COVID.

Coronavirus experts in Los Angeles made the announcement this week ... saying if people host large gatherings for the Chiefs vs. Bucs next weekend, it could be dire.

"Don’t organize a party at home," L.A. County public health director Barbara Ferrer said. "Don’t go to a Super Bowl party."

Ferrer added, "It will be tragic if the Super Bowl becomes a super-spreader of coronavirus."

The COVID numbers in L.A. are some of the worst in the nation ... with over 1 million people having been diagnosed in the county throughout the past year.

And, despite positivity rates finally starting to slowly decline, Ferrer and the rest of the county's health officials are urging people to not let their guard down -- even if it's just for a few hours to watch football.

"Each of us needs to make very careful choices about what we do," Ferrer said. "Please don’t resume socializing with lots of people not in your household."

If a social gathering is an absolute must ... Ferrer did lay out some guidelines -- explaining the event should consist of only one or two households that have been stable and safe.

Shaquille O'Neal thinks the usual Super Bowl pre-game coverage is super lame -- so he's created his own event with a ton of his famous friends ... and he's calling it, "The Shaq Bowl."

Superstars like Tim Tebow, Ezekiel Elliott, Diplo, The Miz, Anthony Anderson, Nelly, Offset and more are all booked to compete in various crazy events at a custom-built Shaq Bowl stadium in Tampa on Feb. 7.

All of the action will happen leading up to the Super Bowl game -- and it'll be live-streamed across more than 20 platforms including LiveXLive, YouTube, Twitch, TikTok and Twitter starting at 3 PM ET.

"With everyone home this year, we're gonna do something that's fun and entertaining for the people," Shaq tells TMZ Sports.

"I got a crazy lineup, bunch of my close friends -- it's gonna feature athletes, celebrities, superstar-artists across 2 teams competing in fun and viral challenges."

Shaq tells us the event, officially titled "Mercari Presents the Shaq Bowl," will have strict COVID protocols in place ... and they WILL be enforced.

"We're gonna hire a professional well-known staff and they're gonna do what they do," Shaq says ... "Shaq does not mess around."

As for why he decided to go up against the big network Super Bowl pre-game show ... Shaq didn't pull any punches.

"Look, all the Super Bowl pre-game stuff is kinda boring ... so we're gonna change the game."

Can you imagine if TB12 became TB7?!?!?

Tom Brady was VERY close to making that huge change -- with the QB considering swapping his number after joining the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

So why #7?? 'Cause Brady's going after that 7th ring, baby!!!

Bucs GM Jason Licht made the major revelation in an interview on the Peter King Podcast this week ... saying Brady was totally fine with letting star receiver Chris Godwin keep #12 'cause he had a new number in mind.

Licht breaks down the convo after the move to TB was a done deal ... and it's the most Brady story ever.

"After we had talked and we knew that this was gonna happen, I said, 'Hey, there's one other thing. It's a small thing but maybe a big thing," Licht says."

"We have a #12 on our team and he's pretty good, Chris Godwin. What are you thinking about that?'

Brady's response?? ... "'Oh, he's a great player, I'm not going to take his number. Know what number I'm thinking of? I'm thinking of taking maybe #7. Is that available?'"

"I said, 'Yeah, I think it is, why #7?' He goes, 'Going after that 7th Super Bowl.'"

It's crazy to hear Brady was prepared to ditch #12 so easily ... after all, the dude has an entire TB12 brand tied to his beloved digits.

Of course, Godwin ended up switching to #14 to let Brady take #12 ... and TB12 is one win away from that 7th ring.

The Scooter is faster than The Cheetah!?

Buccaneers wideout Scott "Scooter" Miller certainly thinks so ... 'cause he just revealed he believes he'd DUST Tyreek Hill in a 1-on-1 sprint!!!

"I'm taking me every day of the week," the 23-year-old Tom Brady target said on the Dan Patrick Show on Wednesday. "I'll take me over anybody."

Of course, there's a hell of a lot of people who would disagree ... Tyreek is considered the fastest player in the NFL -- and Scott is considered, well, not that.

But, Miller does have some wheels ... you'll recall, the dude ran a 4.36 40-yard dash at his Pro Day at Bowling Green back in 2019 -- and he did look awfully quick on that huge TD against the Packers last week!

"Tyreek is unbelievable, super quick, unbelievable talent," Miller said. "But, if we're talking about a race, I've got all of the confidence in myself going up against anybody."

A race between the two almost certainly will never go down ... remember, Hill told TMZ Sports just a few weeks ago he "retired" from racing people.

But, Hill will play Miller next Sunday for the Super Bowl title when the Chiefs meet the Bucs again.

Amanda Gorman -- the famous poet who delivered a powerful speech at Joe Biden's inauguration earlier this month -- has been tapped by the NFL to read another beautiful message at next week's Super Bowl.

League officials made the announcement Wednesday ... saying the 22-year-old has agreed to write and recite a poem honoring three pandemic heroes just before kickoff on Feb. 7.

"The recitation of the poem will air nationally on CBS," NFL officials said, "and be featured in-stadium.​"

The 3 honorees the NFL has selected for the big moment are all very special Americans ... Trimaine Davis, a teacher; Suzie Dorner, a nurse; and James Martin, a Marine Corps veteran; have all been widely heralded for their roles in helping others during the height of COVID-19.

Davis, the NFL says, helped less fortunate families with technology so they could learn his teaching lessons properly over the Internet while in quarantine.

NFL officials say Dorner logged countless hours in the hospital helping sick patients -- this all while losing two grandparents to the coronavirus.

The NFL says Martin, meanwhile, helped veterans and other members of his community get through tough times during the pandemic.

The NFL recently surprised all three with trips to the Super Bowl ... having NFL legends Doug Baldwin, Derrick Brooks and Jerome Bettis break the news in an awesome fashion to the trio.

The league says all three heroes will be honorary captains at the pre-game coin toss.

"We are honored to recognize these three individuals who represent the best in all of us,” NFL commish Roger Goodell said. “During this incredibly challenging time in our lives, Trimaine, Suzie, and James have exemplified the essence of leadership, each in their own way."