TMZ Sports - Page 50

The woman accusing Antonio Brown of rape met with NFL officials on Monday in a 10-hour marathon session, where she spelled out her case against the Patriots star.

Britney Taylor did NOT travel to the league office in New York -- instead an NFL representative flew out to meet her, according to Yahoo Sports.

When they finally sat down, Taylor detailed her allegations against Brown in a 10-hour meeting, according to CNN.

As we previously reported, Taylor -- AB's former personal trainer -- is suing Brown, claiming he sexually assaulted her 3 times between 2017 and 2018 ... including a violent rape in May 2018.

Brown has denied the allegations, claiming Taylor is out for a money grab -- and says she's just bitter he wouldn't invest in her business plans for a gymnastics training center.

For what it's worth, Brown's accuser did not file a police report before filing the civil suit and law enforcement officials are not conducting a criminal investigation at this time.

The NFL is reportedly trying to set up a meeting with Brown as well to get his side of the story in person. No word on if/when that meeting will take place.

Kurt Warner is going to bat for Eli Manning -- the guy who replaced him as the starting Giants' QB back in the day -- saying Eli definitely was NOT the problem in New York this season.

"If u watched the film, ELI was one of the few guys playing winning fball for that team!!" Warner said.

"Maybe I’m biased but there is nothing worse in fball than a team making the QB the scapegoat for losing when it’s WAY bigger than that!!"

Of course, Kurt and Eli were teammates during the 2004 season. Kurt started the first 9 games but was eventually replaced by Eli (a rookie at the time) after a 2-game losing streak.

Kurt left NY and signed with the AZ Cardinals the next season. Eli has been starting in NY ever since.

... until Tuesday, when the 0-2 Giants announced Manning will ride the bench this weekend and 1st round draft pick Daniel Jones will start.

Kurt never specifically says who's to blame in NY, but calls on Giants brass to start taking a harder look at the roster before benching Eli.

"Guess I am just a believer in playing best guy and if u gave him the job & he didn’t lose it by playing badly - start replacing some other guys first!"

Warner added, "[Manning] has earned better than two games in his last season (if it is his last there which we would all expect)!"

Didi Gregorious says a season-ending foot surgery ain't going to hurt Mike Trout's MVP chances ... the Yankees shortstop tells TMZ Sports the Angels star is definitely deserving of the award!!

"I mean, he got good numbers, right?" Didi says ... "Why not?!"

Trout had been having a historic season until a foot injury this month cost him his final at-bats of the year ... but a lot of people are saying he still deserves the MVP award.

Count Didi in as one of those guys ... 'cause he says Trout's 45 homers, 104 RBIs and .294 batting average are more than good enough to lock up the honor.

Of course, it's high praise from Didi ... seeing as most people consider his NY teammate, DJ LeMahieu the other favorite for the AL's MVP.

LeBron James is paying tribute to the late Nipsey Hussle while on his yacht vacation ... rockin' a dope custom Crenshaw jersey on Tuesday to honor the rapper.

Nipsey was gunned down in front of his Marathon Clothing store in South L.A. back in March. After his death, several high-profile athletes including LeBron, praised Nipsey for being a respected community leader who always gave back.

Clearly, his memory is still strong with LeBron who paid homage to Nipsey with the new personalized threads.

"I know you smiling down back at me my G! The Marathon will Always Continue all around the world with me! #TMC," LeBron said on Instagram.

The jersey is sick -- featuring Nip's famous Crenshaw logo on a blue Lakers alternate jersey.

And now, with Bron's stamp of approval, don't be surprised if people push to see these in an NBA game.

After Nipsey's death, LeBron spoke out on the tragedy ... calling it "one of the most unfortunate events that has happened in American history."

LBJ also wore a shirt to honor his friend at a Lakers game in the days that followed.

Nipsey was only 33.

Austin Rivers has a message for Lonzo Ball -- you're NOT "damaged goods," no matter what your father tells you.

Everyone was talking about LaVar Ball on Monday after he got into it with the New Oleans Pelicans player about the state of the family business, Big Baller Brand, during an episode of "Ball in the Family."

Lonzo floated the idea of changing the company name as part of a BBB relaunch, and LaVar shot that down ... taking a swipe at his son in the process.

"That’s like people saying, ‘Oh, hey, change Lonzo’s name to Alfonzo on the fact that he been damaged goods for the last two years."

Yeah, not good ... people are upset at LaVar saying he crossed a line.

So, when we spotted Austin leaving Poppy in L.A., we asked the Houston Rockets star how he would have reacted if his famous father would have said that to him.

"That'd be messed up," Rivers says.

Austin doesn't trash LaVar -- he's actually complimentary, but reinforces with Lonzo that he's not "damaged goods."

"He's a great player," Rivers says of the 2017 #2 overall NBA Draft pick.

For his part, LaVar issued an explanation through his rep, Denise White ...

Just when Robert Kraft thought everyone had finally moved past his whole Asian massage parlor thing ... Robert De Niro put it right back in the spotlight with a joke at the Alec Baldwin 'Roast!'

De Niro was pretty funny at the Comedy Central event and closed with a zinger at Kraft's expense.

"Like Robert Kraft at a massage parlor, I want my Roast to have a happy ending," he told Baldwin before wrapping it up.

The crowd laughed. So did Baldwin. Guessing Mr. Kraft didn't find it so funny.

Other highlights from the 'Roast' ... De Niro threw a few jokes Caitlyn Jenner's way -- including this gem:

"Caitlyn Jenner. Now there's something different about you but I can't put my finger in it!"

Caitlyn shot back, "Yes, you can!!!" Good times ...

De Niro also went after Donald Trump ... telling the room:

"This is like that Moscow hotel room where a bunch of wh*res p*ssed all over Donald Trump."

There was more ... Jeff Ross killed. Blake Griffin was pretty great. Caroline Rhea was solid. And, Caitlyn Jenner brought the heat when it was her turn to roast.

Good news for Sunny Garcia ... the surf legend is making real progress in his recovery -- even saying a few words -- after nearly dying following a suicide attempt in Oregon back in April.

The 49-year-old, who's battled depression, was hospitalized in the ICU after the incident ... and there were times it didn't look good. Back in July, he underwent surgery after a bout with pneumonia.

Now, the Hawaiian native -- who came up with stars like Kelly Slater and Jamie O'Brien -- is continuing to fight ... and his daughter is reporting the "little triumphs" he's making in his recovery.

"We are taking one day at a time and celebrating each little triumph," Kaila Toetuu said on social media ... "My dad is a warrior and fighting everyday to get better and stronger."

"He has said a few words and is now in therapy daily- physical, speech and occupational."

"My family and I thank you for your continued support for My dad as he continues to heal. It’s going to be a marathon not a sprint but we work every day to make sure he is surrounded with love, laughter and ohana."

Kaila also notes the woman in the photo is her mother, Sunny's first wife.

The family launched a GoFundMe page to help cover costs for Sunny's medical costs and it's already raised over $128,000.

Michael Vick just paid the ultimate compliment to Lamar Jackson ... the NFL legend tells TMZ Sports the Ravens QB reminds him of himself!!!

"I think they're good comparisons man," Vick says. "If anybody looking like me, it's Lamar!!!"

Vick is known as the greatest dual-threat QB in NFL history ... and after Lamar tore up the Dolphins and Cardinals in back-to-back weeks -- we had to ask Mike for his take on LJ.

Vick says he loves that people are comparing Jackson's game to his ... telling us, "That's a dangerous man behind center!!!"

In fact, Vick is so high on what Jackson's been doing to start the 2019 season ... he says he has ZERO advice for him going forward.

"Keep doing what you're doing," Vick says. "Don't change nothing."

By the way, Vick also clapped back at everyone saying Jackson's stats are inflated by playing two sorry teams ... telling us, "You don't go out and throw 5 touchdown passes and call it a fluke."

Odell Beckham wasn't lying ... the Cleveland Browns superstar is rocking a pricey watch on the football field AGAIN -- this despite heavy backlash from when he wore one last week.

Odell was spotted in pregame warm-ups just minutes before the Browns took on the Jets on Monday night wearing what appears to be another Richard Millie piece.

While no longer Browns colors ... this one still seems just as expensive -- if not more so -- with acrylic and flash all over it.

Of course, Odell wore a Browns-colored one during Cleveland's loss last week ... and caught hell from plenty of people for sporting the wrist ice during a game.

But, Beckham fired back after the matchup, saying he'd do it again this week ... adding, "If I want to wear it, I will wear it."

Seems he's following through ... and initial reports say this watch could be worth up to $2 MILLION!!!

There was talk Odell could be fined for wearing the watch during games ... but the league decided not to punish the wideout -- leaving the door open for him to do it again Monday.

Question now is, will his game match the level of swag on his wrist???

The ringside doctor SHOULD HAVE stopped the Tyson Fury fight based on the size of his gash ... but they let it go because Tyson is a huge star -- so says Otto Wallin.

The Swedish fighter tells TMZ Sports ... if the tables were turned, the doctor would DEFINITELY have called the fight because the wound was massive and posed a real medical danger.

"If it was someone else, they probably would have stopped it," Wallin said while hanging at a Vegas pool party.

Still, Wallin is being praised for his gutsy performance ... taking Fury to the 12th round despite being a massive 30-1 underdog. Dude fought his ass off.

There was one questionable moment when Wallin appeared to rake Fury's face after an exchange in an apparent effort to widen the cut on Tyson's face.

We asked Wallin if he felt the move was dirty ... and he sorta copped to it.

"He was using dirty tactics too and I'm not gonna let someone do that to me, without me answering back with some dirty tactics," Wallin said.

"This is boxing. It's a fight and you gotta do everything you can to win."

Despite the cheap shots, Wallin says Fury came to his locker room after the fight to congratulate him on the performance ... "[He] showed some respect."

So, what's next for Wallin? He wants a rematch with Fury but knows he probably won't get it any time soon because Tyson has his sights set on a rematch with Deontay Wilder.

"After that, maybe I could get the winner. That would be great, fight for the world title."

Until then, he's got a message for Fury ...

"I wanna say it was a good fight. Thank you for the opportunity and I hope we can do it again."

Sorry, Jacob deGrom ... you are NOT the NL's Cy Young winner this year -- so says Orel Hershiser -- who tells TMZ Sports Hyun-Jin Ryu is actually most deserving!!!

Of course, Orel's biased ... the dude is a Dodgers legend and is currently broadcasting L.A.'s games -- but he swears Ryu is the best pitcher in the National League this season.

"My mind and my heart say that," Orel tells us.

Ryu REALLY struggled in four of his last five starts -- hitting a slump that caused his ERA to balloon up from sub-2.00 to 2.35 -- which made a lot of pundits to hop off his Cy Young bandwagon.

But, Hershiser thinks that's a mistake, telling us, "If he would have spread out his slump over a time period, you would have said, 'Oh, he's had the better year.'"

As for who else is in the running for the award, Orel says it's down to Ryu, deGrom, Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg in the NL.

Michael Strahan is going to war with one of his ex-wives over child support -- and the ex-NFL superstar just arrived to court in Manhattan for a hearing on the issue.

Our sources connected to Michael say he is NOT behind on his child support payments to his ex-wife, Jean Muggli Strahan. However, she is presumably seeking to increase his monthly payments.

The standoff is between Michael and Jean -- his second ex-wife -- who have twin daughters together, Sophia and Isabella, who are now almost 15 years old. Jean and her attorney Shannon Simpson, from the law firm Cohen Clair, was also present for Monday's hearing.

Michael is obviously doing very well for himself -- following his lucrative Hall of Fame career in the NFL, he's now hosting "Good Morning America" and 2 other shows on ABC. It seems likely Jean is seeking an increase based on his increased income.

Michael and Jean married way back in 1999, but they split in 2006, and the divorce was nasty. Their divorce proceedings dragged on for months, and the judge eventually awarded Jean $15.3 million and set Michael's child support for their daughters at $18,000 per month.

President Trump just presented Mariano Rivera with the Presidential Medal of Freedom on Monday ... and unfortunately, he left his calculator behind.

POTUS -- a HUGE Yankees fan -- honored the Sandman at 1600 Penn on Monday ... praising "maybe the greatest pitcher of all time" for his accomplishments on and off the mound.

FYI -- the Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest award a civilian can achieve in the United States -- and is given to people who make an especially great contribution to American society.

But, the funny part is when Trump tried to do some impromptu math ... and hilariously failed when talking about MR's minor league ERA in 1990.

"That year, he had an average ERA of 0.17 ... so that doesn't mean ONE. That means, like, 1/17th of one."

Uhh ... no, it doesn't, Mr. President. Like, not even close. But, hey, we get it. Math is hard.

For the record, .17 is closer to 1/6th of 1 ... not 1/17th.

Of course, the love between Trump and Mariano is mutual -- Rivera serves as the co-chair of the President’s Council on Sports, Fitness & Nutrition ... and became a U.S. citizen in 2015.

Antonio Brown adamantly denies new allegations he got naked and hit on a female artist during a 2017 encounter, despite allegations in a Sports Illustrated article.

"Antonio Brown has reviewed the sexual misconduct allegations made by an unnamed artist included in a recently published Sports Illustrated article and denies that he ever engaged in such activities," Browns' attorney Darren Heitner tells us.

"There will be no further comment at this time."

In the SI article, published Monday morning, the outlet cites an interview with a woman who claims Brown hired her to paint a mural on the wall of his Pittsburgh-area home in June 2017.

The woman told SI ... while she was painting the mural, he came up from behind her "naked, holding a small hand towel over his genitals."

The woman claims Brown was "flirty" with her but she paid him no mind -- but after she turned down his advances, she claims Brown "ghosted" her.

The woman says she never filed a police report or took ANY action against Brown -- and says she has no plans to pursue legal action in the future.

The woman also says Brown did pay for the artwork and they haven't spoken since.

Of course, the allegations are significant in the wake of a bombshell lawsuit filed by Britney Taylor -- who claims Brown sexually assaulted her on 3 separate occasions ... including a violent rape in 2018.

Brown has vehemently denied Taylor's allegations as well and has vowed to countersue.

The SI article features interviews with several fitness and diet specialists who say they had a bad business relationship with Brown ... including Dr. Victor Prisk, who says Brown stiffed him out of $11,500 after working with him in 2018.

Prisk became a mini-Internet sensation when Brown farted in his face during a body fat test.

"It just seemed childish to me," Prisk told SI ... "I'm a doctor and this man is farting in my face."

Tyson Fury was so grateful for the miracle his amazing cutman, Jorge Capetillo, pulled off to keep him in the Otto Wallin fight, he broke the guy off with a CASH BONUS, BABY!!!

That's according to Capetillo himself, who says Fury showered him with praise for the way he treated the two MASSIVE gashes he suffered during Saturday night's main event.

If you saw the fight ... you know Jorge's handiwork -- he somehow managed to slow the bleeding and ultimately prevented Fury from losing the fight (and his championship belt) due to a doctor's stoppage.

So, when we spoke with Capetillo (nicest guy ever BTW), we asked if Fury gave him some love after the fight.

"Yeah, he gave me a bonus, that's for sure!"

Capetillo also told us Fury's cut was THE WORST he's ever seen in his career as a cutman -- and explained his strategy in tending to the wound.

The big question ... how many tubs of Vaseline did you go through?!?!?!

Capetillo says he visited Fury the day after the fight to check in and Tyson was in great spirits -- once again, thanking Jorge for his tremendous work.

Seems Kyrie Irving is off the market ... because his girlfriend is flaunting a massive diamond on her ring finger just days after the NBA star was rumored to have popped the question.

The Brooklyn Nets superstar was out in NYC over the weekend -- but all eyes were on his lady friend, Golden, whose ring is bigger than her knuckle.

The paps congratulated Kyrie and Golden on their engagement ... and the couple didn't exactly deny it.

So, if our math is correct ... ring + PDA + engagement rumors = actual engagement (probably).

We don't know too much about Golden ... other than she's a fashion and fitness influencer with more than 400k followers on Instagram.

By the way, it's been radio silence on the alleged engagement from both Kyrie and Golden on social media ... but they're out in public in real life. So, that still counts right???

Kyrie reportedly just signed a brand new $141 MILLION contract with the Nets -- and he's already made $95 mil in his 8 seasons in the NBA.