TMZ Sports - Page 50

Jerry Jones should NOT fire Jason Garrett ... and should instead give him a fat, new contract extension -- so says Emmitt Smith, who tells TMZ Sports the Cowboys coach is great!!!

A lot of fans in Dallas seem to disagree ... JG only has 2 playoff wins in 9 seasons -- but, Emmitt is going to bat for the dude regardless.

The Cowboys legend tells us the job Garrett did bringing the Cowboys back from 3-5 to NFC East Champs this season was awesome ... and he deserves a new deal because of it.

"It takes a skill and a special guy to try to keep players motivated when everyone else is counting you out. And he did that with this team," Smith told us at the EA Sports Madden Bowl.

"Got them in the playoffs, got them to a playoff game, and, obviously, didn't finish, but he has a lot to build upon."

As for all the people clamoring for Tony Romo to take over Garrett's job ... Emmitt says he doesn't know if the ex-QB will be a slam-dunk with instant success on the sideline.

Conor McGregor better keep his head on a swivel ... 'cause Khabib Nurmagomedov's manager says a rematch is going down ON SITE ... telling TMZ Sports, "This dude better beef up security everywhere he goes."

We spoke with Ali Abdelaziz about the state of the rematch after the Nevada State Athletic Commission handed down the punishments for the post-UFC 229 brawl ... and Ali says it's going down whenever, wherever.

"This fight will happen in the street, in the parking garage, under a bridge ... this sh*t is not over. It's not. Especially when you keep running your mouth."

Conor's been vocal on social media since the NSAC hearing ... saying he threw the last punch and continuing to go after Khabib's guys.

Ali's not fazed by the smack talk ... and gives a bit of his own.

"Conor McGregor is a f**king full-blown, piece of sh*t, scumbag. That's what people want."

Of course, Dana White told us last month the rematch "should" happen in 2019 ... that is, if these dudes don't find each other first.

Here's a 24 year old version of the Dallas Cowboys' starting quarterback Tony Romo in a team headshot back in 2005 (left) ... and 14 years later the eerily psychic 38 year old Super Bowl LIII analyst earlier this month (right).

His future is looking good ... and he knows all about it.

The question is ...

Terrell Suggs is a future Hall of Famer ... one of the greatest defensive players in NFL history.

So, when it's all said and done ... could he be known as the greatest Ravens player of all time?

That's what we asked Ray Lewis moments ago at an event for the Ray of Hope Foundation ... and his reaction says it all.

Some facts ...

Suggs has racked up 132 sacks in his 16-year NFL career ... ranking 13th overall. If he plays in 2019 (which he's reportedly planning to do) he should easily crack the Top 10.

He's also a 7-time Pro Bowler, Super Bowl champ and was the 2011 NFL Defensive Player of the Year.

But, is he better than Ray Lewis??

Ray was a 13-time Pro Bowler, 2 Super Bowl rings, 2-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year ... and he's got a Super Bowl MVP trophy too.

So, yeah ... T-Sizzle is a legend -- but, he ain't Ray.

Dolphins star Xavien Howard knows a thing or two about tats -- dude's covered!! -- so here's the defensive back imparting his ink wisdom onto Ariana Grande.

The 25-year-old was out at the EA Sports Madden Bowl on Thursday when we broke the news to him that Ariana screwed up her hand tat ... TWICE.

ICYMI ... Grande tried to ink "7 Rings" onto her palm -- but left out a couple characters and got "Japanese BBQ Grill" instead. When she tried to fix it -- it got worse.

You can tell the whole drama pains Howard (something tells us he's been there before) ... but fear not, Ariana -- the NFL star has a plan for how to move on from the tattoo disaster.

"Just get it covered up with something else different. Just forget about the slogan for your album."

Translation ... better say "thank you, next" to this one.

Move over Tiger Woods ... Amy Bockerstette is officially the biggest badass on the links -- 'cause the Special Olympian was invited to play a hole with PGA tour stars this week ... and she parred!!!

It all went down during a practice round at the Waste Management Phoenix Open ... where Gary Woodland and Matt Kuchar invited Amy to take a shot at the course's famous 16th hole.

Amy -- who has Down syndrome -- showed absolutely ZERO nerves off the tee box ... smashing her drive just short of the green in a bunker.

But, there were no worries about hittin' it fat from the trap ... 'cause Amy hit a shot outta the sand that woulda made Tiger himself jealous!!!

Then came the best part ... SHE BURIED THE PUTT FOR PAR!!!!

The crowd went nuts ... the PGA tour stars loved it ... and Amy shrugged it off like it was just another day at the range!!

Of course, Amy's certainly been in bigger situations ... she is, after all, the first-ever collegiate golfer to compete with an intellectual disability.

One of Billy Joel's roadies says a Philadelphia concert was unforgettable -- not for "Piano Man" or "My Life" -- but because a part of the stage allegedly came crashing down on him.

Carl Anderson is suing Billy, claiming the singer is responsible for injuries he suffered back in September 2017 while working as a stage handler. According to the suit, he helped set up for Billy's gig at Citizens Bank Park, home of the Philadelphia Phillies ... who are also getting sued.

In docs, obtained by TMZ, Anderson says he was in the stage area when, out of nowhere, a scaffolding pipe fell and struck him ... leaving him with a herniated disc and severe nerve damage in his back and neck.

Anderson says the injuries cost him a bundle in medical bills, plus he lost wages and future earnings.

In the suit, he says Billy, the venue and the concert's promoter, Live Nation, were negligent in maintaining the stage equipment. He's suing all of the above, and the Phillies, for unspecified damages.

NBA superstar Anthony Davis says he never wanted his trade demand to go public ... but now that it's become the talk of the entire league, he's explaining why he wants outta NOLA.

AD's agent, Rich Paul, made the trade request public earlier this week -- which ultimately cost Davis $50k -- but, now we're finally hearing straight from the 25-year-old why he's ready to move on.

"I feel like it's my time," Davis told reporters on Friday. "I gave this city, organization, fans, everything I feel like I could."

Davis also refutes any reports claiming he requested to be moved to L.A. or New York.

"We never gave the Pelicans a destination."

Jarvis Landry isn't playing around about his intentions to bring Antonio Brown and Le'Veon Bell to the Browns ... telling TMZ Sports he REALLY wants 'em in Cleveland.

Landry has previously reached out to both guys on Twitter -- and even tried to set up a 3-way call between the superstars to convince them CLE is the place to be.

So, when we saw Juice leaving Magic City -- one of the GREATEST booty clubs on Earth -- we had to ask if he's still trying to bring the Steelers players to the Dawg Pound.

"We want to! We want to," Jarvis said ... "We should!"

The Browns offense would be INSANE with that group -- joining a stacked offense that already includes Baker Mayfield, Nick Chubb, David Njoku, Antonio Callaway and more.

Look, the chances of both guys ending up in Cleveland are probably slim ... but, it's also unlikely Brown and Bell will both be in Pittsburgh next year.

Now, the question is ... where will they land?

Seems the ice has thawed between Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Donald Trump -- because Kraft just praised POTUS on live TV ... and thanked him for his support of the team in the Super Bowl.

Kraft appeared on "Fox & Friends" early Friday morning where was asked how he felt about Trump sending a congratulatory tweet to the Patriots following their big win in the AFC Championship game.

"We can use every fan who wants to support us from wherever they are in their standard of life," Kraft said.

When asked if he's spoken with Trump -- or gotten advice from the President -- Kraft continued to throw nice words Trump's way.

"I have a lot of people who give me advice and he's been very supportive and I know he's working very hard to serve the best interest of the country."

It's interesting considering the relationship between Kraft and Trump has been rocky over the past few years.

The two were VERY close for years but then clashed in April over Trump's handling of the Colin Kaepernick kneeling situation.

Remember, Trump called for NFL owners to fire any "son of a bitch" who doesn't stand for the anthem.

Kraft called Trump's statements "divisive" and "horrible."

But, it seems it's all water under the bridge now.

Makes us wonder if Trump is also repairing his relationship with Tom Brady -- who he was also very close with.

However, Gisele has become a very outspoken critic of Trump ever since he took office and Tom and Trump have seemingly had a falling out.

But now, with Trump publicly supporting Brady again ... it'll be interesting to see if Tom returns the love.

Colin Kaepernick is not only good enough to play in the NFL right now ... he's "ready to go" for a tryout ASAP -- so says his ex-49ers coach, Chip Kelly.

Kap played under Chip back in 2016 ... and actually began his anthem kneeling protests that season. The QB is now suing the NFL, claiming he's been blackballed by teams ever since.

Chip is now the head coach at UCLA -- and, when we got him out at Craig's on Thursday night ... he seemed to agree with Kap -- saying the guy is DEFINITELY still good enough to play in the league.

In fact ... Chip tells us he's under the impression Kap could try out for a team TODAY -- and still impress.

"I think he's ready to go."

Of course, the league's commissioner says otherwise ... Roger Goodell just told reporters he believes it's Kap's skill set -- not his politics -- that is keeping him from playing.

But Chip tells us, "anybody that wants a good quarterback" should sign him.

BTW ... Chip was out at the L.A. hot spot with high school football star Puka Nacua -- one of the top WRs in the country who's visiting from Utah.

The reason this is a big deal is because Puka had previously committed to USC ... yet, here he is at dinner with UCLA's top man just days before National Signing Day.

So, can Chip flip Puka from Troy to Westwood??? We talked to Puka about it ... and it seems he's got a lot of thinking to do before putting the pen to paper.

Saints sensation Alvin Kamara has ZERO interest in talking to NFL Commish Roger Goodell about how the team got JOBBED in the NFC Championship ... because it won't change a damn thing.

Earlier this week, Goodell held a press conference and said, "I’ve talked to Coach Payton. The team, the players, we understand the frustration they feel right now, and we certainly want to address that."

Some interpreted Goodell's statement to mean he talked directly with Saints players -- even though the league office eventually walked it back and acknowledged Goodell had NOT.

When we spoke with the Saints RB at the EA Sports Madden Bowl event in ATL on Thursday -- he confirmed there was NEVER a meeting with Goodell and the players ... but he has no desire to talk anyway.

"I'm not gonna talk to him," Kamara said ... "Somebody gonna talk to him. He needs to talk to somebody."

Does Kamara want an apology from Goodell for the terrible officiating that cost his team a shot at the Super Bowl? No.

"Apology's not gonna do nothing."

Kamara says he hopes SOME good can come out of the controversy -- he's just not sure what it is or could be.

WWE superstar Adam Cole thinks it's a joke that he's not the reigning 'NXT' champion -- and says he plans on making a massive violent statement when he gets in the ring on Sunday.

Cole is teaming up with Johnny Gargano and Tommaso Ciampa for a 6-man tag team match at WWE's 'Halftime Heat' show ... and tells TMZ Sports it's an opportunity to show the world why he deserves a shot at the title.

"I'm a guy who feels like I should be a champion at 'NXT' ... I think it's an outrage that I'm not."

By the way, Cole also has a message for his Super Bowl halftime competition, Adam Levine -- but it's more of an olive branch than a declaration of war ... unlike the WWE promo for 'Halftime Heat.'

Kristaps Porzingis is already getting love in his new town ... 'cause Emmitt Smith is welcoming him to Dallas with open arms ... telling TMZ Sports he's stoked for the blockbuster trade!!

K.P. -- along with Trey Burke, Courtney Lee and Tim Hardaway Jr. -- was just traded to the Mavericks in exchange for DeAndre Jordan, Dennis Smith Jr. and Wesley Matthews on Thursday.

We broke the news to the Cowboys legend at the EA Sports Madden Bowl ... and the dude is pumped about the move, to say the least.

"Anything that can improve our team is great," Smith says. "With Luka [Doncic] and the guys that we actually have that are playing right now, I'm excited for where the Mavs are trying to get to."

In the running back battle of L.A., it's Melvin Gordon over Todd Gurley ... at least, according to Melvin Gordon.

The L.A. Chargers star is feelin' himself after a pretty solid 2018 season -- he only played in 12 games due to injury, but still managed to rack up 885 rushing yards and 10 rushing TDs.

Not bad!!!

Gordon's a cool guy -- and even when he was braggin' about himself, he still showed respect for Gurley, who's getting ready to play in the Super Bowl.

Billy McFarland and Fyre Fest got nothing on this guy ... allegedly.

A Georgia man has vanished after cops say he ripped off friends and family members to the tune of more than $750,000 in a Super Bowl LIII ticket scam.

At least a dozen say Ketan Shah promised them primo seats to see the Patriots take on the Rams, and got a ton of money up front for those tickets ... but never delivered before going MIA. Cops say one alleged victim forked over $20k, and another gave him $500k.

Perhaps worst of all is a $36,000 payment Shah allegedly took -- from his own mother!! He also took out a half-million dollar loan against the digital printing shop he owns in Gwinnett County.

All the victims say Shah promised them 100 level seats, plus access to a concierge lounge and Super Bowl pre-parties. They're all getting bupkis.

BTW, Mama Shah wasn't having it ... she's among the alleged victims who dimed out Shah to cops. WSB in Atlanta first reported the scam, and says Shah's wife reported him missing in early January, and hasn't seen him since.