TMZ Sports - Page 4

Derrick Henry wanted to give a lil' "thank you" gift to his offensive line for making him look so damn good ... and nothing shows gratitude like a BRAND NEW ROLEX!!!

Of course, the Tennessee Titans just beat Tom Brady and the Patriots in the AFC Wildcard game 20-13 ... and Henry went BEAST MODE in that game with 182 yards and a TD!

Obviously, Henry couldn't have done it without his lineman --- so the Titans RB showed up to practice with a Rolex for each of 'em ... and they went CRAZY!!!

"Appreciate you big dog!!!" Titans guard Jamil Douglas told Henry.

This is not the first time the 26-year old hooked his line up. Last January, he gifted 'em custom diamond chains after he ran for 238 yards against the Jaguars!

Longtime NFL executive Marc Ross says the "Rooney Rule" is a "mockery" and a "sham" and if it isn't fixed, talented minority coaches will continue to be overlooked.

If you're not familiar with Ross ... he has 21 years of front office experience and was most recently the NY Giants VP of Player Evaluation. Ross was responsible for helping draft players like Odell Beckham Jr., Landon Collins, and Jason Pierre-Paul.

In December 2017, Ross interviewed for Big Blues general manager job after the organization fired Jerry Reese.

Ross didn't get the gig ... and he says that's not the only time he's interviewed and been passed over for a GM job.

In fact, Ross -- who graduated from Princeton and was at one time the youngest college scouting director in the NFL (27 years old) -- says he interviewed 12 times for the position ... but was never hired.

So, why are we talking about this?

The NFL's "Rooney Rule" has been under major scrutiny this off-season after all but 1 (Ron Rivera in Washington) of the available head coaching jobs went to white coaches.

The Rooney Rule is a policy that was instituted in 2003 ... which mandated all teams interview a minority candidate prior to hiring a coach or GM.

In theory, it was designed to help minorities land jobs ... but Ross says it clearly hasn't worked.

"The intent of it was to put minority candidates in front of the owners and think that once the owners saw these candidates that were qualified and capable of the job that they would start hiring them," Ross tells us.

"The problem was that the owners already in their mind, for the most part, knew who they wanted to hire and were just going through the routine of interviewing a minority candidate without any true intentions of making them a viable candidate for the job, so it turned to just kind of a mockery or a sham."

Ross says although the Rooney Rule hasn't been effective, it's not a complete lost cause ... but changes need to be made.

Olympic athletes looking to follow Colin Kaepernick's lead will have to do it somewhere other than Tokyo ... 'cause the IOC has banned kneeling and raising fists in protests at the 2020 games.

The International Olympic Committee released its guidelines for the upcoming Summer Games ... and it's clear the committee is trying very hard to keep politics out of it.

"The unique nature of the Olympic Games enables athletes from all over the world to come together in peace and harmony," the guidelines say.

"We believe that the example we set by competing with the world’s best while living in harmony in the Olympic Village is a uniquely positive message to send to an increasingly divided world."

"This is why it is important, on both a personal and a global level, that we keep the venues, the Olympic Village and the podium neutral and free from any form of political, religious or ethnic demonstrations."

Don't write off Julianne Hough and Brooks Laich's marriage just yet! If the couple's having marital issues, they sure as hell didn't show it during a very loving airport embrace.

Julianne picked up her hockey star husband Thursday morning at the Hollywood Burbank Airport Thursday, where they exchanged smiles and a loooooong hug before driving off together.

The PDA didn't include any kissing, but the reunion was romantic enough ... especially considering all the rumors about them separating. It is interesting, though ... while Julianne picked up Brooks, she still wasn't wearing her wedding ring -- part of what started the rumors. Brooks was wearing his.

Mark Wahlberg's nine days into 2020 and it appears he's never wearing a shirt ever again ... not that anyone's complaining.

Marky Mark's still in vacay mode and this time he's enjoying the picturesque beaches of Hawaii. The action star's actually in town competing in the Hawaii Sony Open Pro-Am. Talented actor and athlete. Yeah ... dude can hit a mean stroke. He's been known to do "golf cardio" ... where astoundingly he plays 18 holes in an hour.

And, like every star who works hard, he's still partying hard ... putting everyone's New Year's resolution diet/exercising plan to shame with his ripped bod. Seems he's got zero plans to slow down his R&R sesh.

Imagine riding the subway to work on a totally normal morning ... and sharing your commute with the entire Toronto Maple Leafs roster!!!

That's exactly what happened on Thursday ... when Auston Matthews and his boys headed to their annual outdoor practice by using public transit.

It's become a tradition for Toronto to give the fans a cool, up-close experience at Nathan Phillips Square in the 6 ... and give subway-goers a ride they'll never forget!!

Maple Leafs star Mitchell Marner -- who just signed a 6-year, $65.3 MILLION with Toronto this past offseason -- was even signing autographs while hanging with the normies.

Of course, the boys ended up getting to the ice for a full day of practice ... which includes a 3-on-3 tournament for all the fans to watch. Cool stuff.

Kobe Bryant is an 18x All-Star and 5x NBA champ, but Mamba says there's one career achievement he lacks, and it makes him mad ... not winning a 6th chip and catching Michael Jordan!!

Bryant chopped it up with Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes on the "All The Smoke" podcast ... where he talked about his (friendly) rivalry with MJ, and his frustration from not winning another ring, and tying Jordan.

"It pissed me off. But, things are what they are. You push for a goal, and my original goal was to try to win 8. You push for it. Push for it. Push for it, and you do the best you can," Kobe says.

"But at the end of the day you can be comfortable with the results and where they landed and where they ended up. And so that's the most important thing."

"That's why I can be really really comfortable with the career that I've had. Cause I worked as hard as I possibly could."

Let's be real ... 5 titles is crazy impressive. In fact, only 13 men -- including legendary hoopers like Bill Russell and John Havlicek -- have won more than 5 rings.

There's more Mamba-MJ talk ... Kobe also tells the story of the time he and Jordan debated who'd win in a dream matchup -- Michael's 1991 Bulls vs. Bryant's 2003 Lakers.

15-year-old rising tennis star Coco Gauff might have to put her dad in a time-out -- he accidentally cursed while coaching her during a match ... and she called him out for it!!

The whole interaction was thankfully caught on camera because Coco and her dad/coach were mic'd up for her ASB Classic match in New Zealand ... and in between sets, he gave her a pep talk.

Her dad, Corey, is heard giving out compliments left and right ... but got a bit carried away when he said, "There's one thing you did the last 3 games, you ain't give up no free points on no damn serve. That serve is weak."

That's when Coco chastised pops for using a bad word while mic'd ... saying, "You can't curse."

Dad's reaction is priceless ... at first he can't believe he cussed on a hot mic, but then directly apologized into the microphone for the slip-up.

But then Corey, still in disbelief, asks Coco again if he really cussed ... and she tells him he did, in fact, say "the d word."

"Oh, well that don't even count," Dad responded.

Coco wasn't havin' it, though ... saying, "in some places, it does!!"

Dad apologized once again ... and Gauff went on to lose the match to Laura Siegemund.

Jillian Michaels stands by her comment about Lizzo's weight, but says don't for a second think she was fat shaming her over her worth as an entertainer ... it was all about her health.

We got the fitness guru Thursday morning in NYC, and she was playing a little defense over her Wednesday interview where she said, "Why are we celebrating [Lizzo's] body? Why does it matter? Why aren't we celebrating her music? 'Cause it isn't gonna be awesome if she gets diabetes."

Lizzo fans came for JM's head immediately, but she says everyone's got it twisted. Jillian told us she's always preached, "Your weight and your size have no bearing or merit on your value, your beauty, your worth, your ability."

Now, health? That's a whole other issue, and Jillian ain't about to back down on that front!

She told us why she believes acting like Lizzo's size isn't opening her up to several serious health risks ... is downright irresponsible. She runs down a few of the dangers the singer could be facing ... again, in Jillian's eyes.

Watch the clip, as a health and fitness expert, Jillian's definitely confident in what she's saying here -- but will Lizzo fans feel good as hell about it?

We highly doubt it.

Lori Loughlin and husband Mossimo Giannulli have a secret weapon in their college admissions criminal case -- the former head of the USC athletics department, who made it clear during his tenure -- the school gave him a clear directive to raise money, and lots of it.

As we reported, our sources say Lori and Mossimo will NOT enter a plea bargain ... they are determined to win at trial. Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ, one of the key witnesses could be former Athletic Director Pat Haden, who is on video from 2011 talking about his mission from the University to fundraise.

We're told at its core Lori and Mossimo's defense is that they did NOT bribe the former Senior Associate Athletic Director Donna Heinel, something the U.S. Attorney disputes. Thing is ... we found out Mossimo did indeed send Heinel a check for $50,000 but it could not have been a bribe because the payee was USC. That money was sent at the direction of the ringleader, Rick Singer.

Singer also told Mossimo to give him a check for $200,000, to help fund one of Singer's charities. Again, not a bribe.

The U.S. Attorney says the smoking gun is that Heinel received $20,000 a month from Rick Singer, which prosecutors say is proof of a bribe. The thing about this ... both of Lori's daughters were accepted BEFORE Heinel received a penny, and our sources say that money was sent to her only by Singer and for various things Heinel did for several families. But, Lori and Mossimo's position is that whatever Singer did in terms of paying money, he did on his own.

The body of a 21-year-old college soccer player was found being devoured by sharks in Western Australia ... after the man went missing in the ocean last week.

Rising star Eric Birighitti -- from Perth, Australia -- was a stand-out player for Hastings College in Nebraska and won a national title with the team in 2016.

Birighitti was at Twilight Beach near Esperance last Thursday when he was swept into the ocean by a swell. Friends tried to save him with a life preserver ... but the current was too strong.

The man's body was discovered on Tuesday when the sharks were spotted attacking the corpse in the water, witnesses tell to 9 News Perth.

"My sister and my father saw the sharks attacking the body. And it was quite a big one, they say," the witness told the outlet.

Birighitti's college team released a statement on his death, saying, "The Broncos family are saddened to hear about the sudden passing of Eric Birighitti."

"Eric played for Hastings during the 2016 & 2017 season and won a national title with the team."

Did you know Todd Gurley could party like a frat star!??!

Neither did we ... until Wednesday night -- when the L.A. Rams running back chugged beers and bro'd down with Dodgers stars at the L.A. Kings game!!!

The video of Gurley throughout the night was more entertaining than the actual on-ice action ... 'cause the 25-year-old lived it up in on-the-glass seats for the Kings-Stars game at Staples Center.

Ya gotta watch the clip ... Gurley rages his face off, throws back some suds and even gets into a chug-off with Dodgers players Gavin Lux, Matt Beaty and Kody Hoese.

IT WAS AWESOME!!!

But the best part? Arena cameras broadcast almost all of it on the jumbotron!!!!

Of course, Gurley and the Dodgers could use the booze ... both squads had rough seasons, with the Rams missing the playoffs and the Dodgers exiting the postseason early.

As for if their antics helped the Kings ... not really, 'cause L.A. lost to Dallas 2-1.

Cavaliers coach John Beilein was forced to apologize to his players Wednesday after he says he accidentally called them "thugs" during a team meeting.

Here's the deal ... the 66-year-old was reportedly praising his Cleveland squad during a film session when he told them they were no longer "playing like a bunch of thugs."

Obviously, the term has an offensive connotation ... and, according to ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski, players were "stunned" by their head coach's comment.

But, Beilein attempted to clear the air after Cavs general manager Koby Altman brought the situation to his attention ... with the coach saying he meant to say "slugs," not "thugs."

"I didn't realize that I had said the word 'thugs,' but my staff told me later I did and so I must have said it," Beilein told Wojnarowski on Wednesday night. "I meant to say slugs, as in slow-moving. We weren't playing hard before, and now we were playing harder. I meant it as a compliment."

Beilein said he already had personally talked to eight of his players over the alleged mix-up, adding, "they are telling me that they understand."

It's been a rough start to Beilein's NBA coaching career ... after being hired this past offseason, the ex-Michigan coach has struggled to adapt to the pros.

He's just 10-27 this season ... and has reportedly riffed with team star Kevin Love throughout his short tenure in Cleveland.

THIS IS INSANE!!!!

An ex-MLB player was SO PISSED about nearly being beaned during a Venezuelan winter league game Wednesday ... he straight-up turned around and attacked the catcher with his bat!!!

The wild scene all went down during a heated matchup between Aguilas del Zulia and Caribes de Anzoategui -- where pitchers were throwing at batters all night.

But, in the 8th inning ... Aguilas outfielder Alex Romero -- a former Arizona Diamondback -- had enough of the bean wars -- and weaponized his bat after he was nearly struck in the back with a fastball.

The video is NUTS ... 36-year-old Romero takes TWO hacks at Caribes catcher Gabriel Lino -- and then all hell breaks lose.

Lino threw his glove at Romero ... the benches cleared -- and fighting could be seen all over the diamond!!!

Eventually, the umps were able to calm things down ... and ejected several players after the brawl -- including Caribes infielder and Minnesota Twins stud Willians Astudillo.

Reportedly, players will face heavy fines and suspensions over the altercation.

The Astros' and Red Sox's cheating scandals are much ado about nothing ... so says Pete Rose, who tells TMZ Sports sign stealing ain't that big of a deal at all.

The MLB legend says back when he was playing ... he NEVER got an advantage by stealing signs -- saying he was always worried the guy reading the catcher would be wrong.

"He might not have the signs -- he might tell you wrong," Rose says. "Now, if you're looking for a low-and-away breaking ball, and the guy throws an up-and-in fastball, you just got one off the kisser."

Of course, the Astros' and the Red Sox's alleged schemes were reportedly much more accurate than a dude standing on 2nd base relaying catchers' signals ... but Rose still says he doesn't care.

In fact, Pete tells us if players were that concerned about it all ... they should just take matters into their own hands and start beaming guys they think are cheating!!!

"I'm f**king serious, bro. You know how serious I take fighting."

That's Logan Paul telling TMZ Sports a potential boxing match with Antonio Brown is VERY realistic ... claiming he's already in talks with AB's camp.

"I think we might be closer than anyone expects," Paul says.

As we previously reported, Logan called out Brown in December -- saying the NFL star would be the perfect opponent to further his pro-boxing career.

Brown responded on social media -- telling Paul, "Square up." Brown has since told Complex he's down to scrap and wants to train with Floyd Mayweather.

So, when we saw Logan in L.A. promoting his brother Jake Paul's upcoming Jan. 30 boxing match against AnEsonGib on DAZN, we had to ask if all the AB fight promotion was real ... or just a gag.

Logan says he's not messing around -- he's deadly serious about getting a deal done and thinks Brown is highly motivated, too.

Paul says transitioning into fighting helped rehab his image after the incident in the Suicide Forest in Tokyo a few years ago ... and a high-profile match could do the same thing for AB.

"In many ways the KSI fight gave me a purpose. I think this would do this for Antonio Brown -- give him a nice pay day, give him a chance to redeem himself."

Paul thinks the fight could be HUGE -- a la Mayweather vs. McGregor.