TMZ Sports - Page 50

Gardner Minshew was a football LEGEND long before he took his first NFL snap ... admitting he once smashed his own hand with a hammer to try and extend his college football career.

The Jacksonville Jaguars QB said it all went down in 2016 during his first year at East Carolina University ... where he was the 3rd string QB and planned on redshirting the season.

But, the 2nd string QB was moved to running back and the 1st string QB suffered a concussion halfway through a game in Week 4, so he was forced to go in and play.

The problem ... once Minshew took the field, the redshirt option was out the window -- and Gardner was pissed he was going to blow an entire year of eligibility for 30 minutes of playing time.

And, what did Gardner do next? He realized the only way to get that year of eligibility back was to get a medical redshirt ... which means he needed to prove he suffered an injury that knocked him out for the season.

"So, you know, I get an idea," Minshew told the guys on Barstool Sports' "Pardon My Take" podcast (go to 31:20).

"I go home, I grab a bottle of Jack Daniels and I grab a hammer. And, I go back into my room, I take a pull of the Jack Daniels, I put my hand down on the table and BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! 1,2,3 ... I hit the hell out of my hand dude!"

Another problem ... Minshew says he knew right away he didn't actually break his hand -- so he continued to smash away another 2 times. But, he failed with each attempt!

"I couldn't break my own hand!"

Oh, and get this ... Minshew says the hand he was smashing was his THROWING HAND because he knew he would be pressured to play through the pain if he broke his non-throwing hand.

At the end of the day, Minshew says he gave up with the fake injury attempt and just told the coach he slammed his hand in a car door.

Behold ... Serena Williams' butt in all its glory!!

Just a few weeks after taking an L in the grand slam final at the U.S. Open, Serena is chillaxing on a beach somewhere ... arms up, cakes out. It's good stuff.

Serena is 37-years-old and continuing to impress in all facets of her life. She's still a beast on the court. Killing it in business. And, her body ... good god.

Despite all the great things, there are still a bunch of racist jerks looking to cause drama in Serena's life, including some moronic Romanian TV host who crawled out of the gutter to describe Williams as a "monkey" during a recent broadcast.

The actual quotes 49-year-old Radu Bancui uttered on TV are so offensive and disgusting, we're not going to publish them here ... but it's been reported he's been fined by the body that oversees content on Romanian television.

Quite frankly, the fine isn't big enough.

Seems Williams has to deal with this kind of crap all the time from various racist idiots all over the world -- including in her home country.

Both Serena and Venus have talked openly about being called the N-word at the 2001 BNP Paribas Open tournament in Indian Wells, California.

But, today, Serena's tuning it all out and basking in her success ... and we couldn't be happier about it.

The NFL is now investigating new troubling text messages Antonio Brown allegedly sent to a woman who accused him of sexual misconduct ... and the texts are damning.

The woman at the center of the investigation is the unnamed artist featured in a Sports Illustrated article published this week who said a naked AB inappropriately hit on her while she was painting a mural at his home in 2017.

The woman never went to authorities with her story ... but the description she gave to SI is a terrible look for the NFL star in the wake of a lawsuit filed another woman accusing him of rape.

The artist claims on Wednesday, Brown initiated a group text -- including her and some of his own associates -- trashing her for talking to SI and calling for his crew to begin digging into her background.

The most troubling text allegedly sent by Brown is this directive to his crew -- which was accompanied by a photo of her children.

"Those her kids and ig Eric she's awfully broke clearly."

Two other people included on the text chain respond, saying they will obey orders to gather info on the woman.

Clearly, the woman felt the texts were sent with the intention of scaring her -- so she went to the NFL to report the incident.

The NFL reportedly reached out to the woman on Thursday less than an hour after they were contacted. League investigators are reportedly scheduling a follow-up interview with the woman.

As for his NFL career, Brown is still active and expected to play for the New England Patriots on Sunday when they take on the NY Jets.

What do two fight legends talk about on the sidelines at an NFL game? FIGHTING!!

Check out Mike Tyson and UFC Hall of Famer "Sugar" Rashad Evans chopping it up right before the Jacksonville Jaguars took on the Tennessee Titans on Thursday ... clearly trading fight tips.

You can see Evans measuring Tyson -- and doing a half roll -- while asking Tyson to evaluate his moves.

Tyson coaches him up and gives him a few tips -- while playfully throwing some kicks in the mix, something he obviously couldn't do in the boxing ring.

40-year-old Evans was just inducted into the UFC HOF earlier this year -- but he's been hanging with Tyson a lot recently ... and you gotta wonder if there's another fight in his future.

What's interesting ... Tyson has said publicly he doesn't fight, train or lift weights any more because he's afraid of snapping back into that hyper-aggressive mindset that got him in trouble back in the day.

Instead, he smokes a ton of weed ... and honestly, he seems a lot more chill these days.

Nate Diaz says anyone who has a problem with the UFC creating a special "Baddest Mother F*cker" belt for his fight with Jorge Masvidal is a "bitch" and needs to "shut the f*ck up."

Nate essentially created the belt after his impressive victory over Anthony Pettis last month after a 3-year hiatus from fighting ... saying he and Jorge are the baddest in the game and should fight for a "BMF" title.

The UFC obliged and booked the fight -- they're even creating a special "BMF" belt just for Nov. 2 fight at UFC 244.

Some MMA fans and reporters have taken issue with the belt saying the UFC is making a mockery of the sport by creating meaningless WWE-style fake belts.

We asked Nate about those funless prudes and and clapped back with some savagery.

"If there's any hate or negativity towards it and if there's anybody who's hating on it, like some of these journalists in here, it's like 'cause none of you guys are no fighters, you're bitches, so shut the f*ck up."

Diaz added, "Tell me I ain't the best motherf*cker in the game and watch me fight the whole game."

Diaz also talked about Conor McGregor and the chances of a 3rd fight -- telling TMZ Sports it's probably gonna happen because they fight in the same bracket.

"Whatever is gonna happen is gonna happen. Time will tell."

Conor McGregor's getting closer to his UFC return ... Dana White says The Notorious will fight early next year, and his opponent could be Nate Diaz or Jorge Masvidal.

McGregor hasn't fought since being submitted by Khabib at UFC 229 in October 2018 ... and many fans have wondered if Conor would ever fight again.

The answer to that question is hell yes.

"Early next year."

Khabib rematch??? No, not yet ... according to Dana.

"That's possible too down the road. I think Conor would fight somebody else before that."

That somebody else could be the winner of Diaz-Masvidal -- who are fighting at UFC 244 on November 2 at Madison Square Garden.

Conor against either guy would be HUGE. CM and Nate's first 2 fights are some of the biggest in the history of the UFC.

As for Masvidal ... he and McGregor have been talkin' trash, and both have said they want the fight.

White's previously said Masvidal -- who fights at 170 pounds -- is too big for Conor ... but it looks like the boss changed his mind.

We also talked to Dana about Khabib's future ... and who the lightweight champ will fight next.

"Tony Ferguson is the fight that needs to happen. We've tried to do it 4 other times so hopefully, we can do it this time. But, that's the fight that makes sense."

Khabib's openly said he wants a super fight with UFC legend Georges St-Pierre ... and when we asked White about a Nurmagomedov-GSP fight, he left the door wide open.

"That can happen too. So, we'll see what happens with Tony. Ya know Tony's had opportunities before that he didn't take, so if he doesn't, I'd be interested in talking about GSP."

Ex-NBA player Ty Lawson allegedly snapped and beat the hell out of a woman on a car ride to a club ... and now, he's being sued over the whole incident.

A woman named Jonae Keyes says back on May 5, she was giving Ty and her friend a ride to a club ... when Lawson and her friend began arguing in the backseat.

In the suit filed by Farid Yaghoubtil, Keyes claims the argument turned physical ... and when she tried to intervene -- she says the 5-foot-11, 195-pound former point guard unexpectedly turned violent toward her.

She says 31-year-old Lawson grabbed her by the neck, choked her and began punching her in the head. She claims she never fought back during the altercation.

She says she suffered physical and psychological damages -- and now, she's suing the former NBA player for an unspecified amount.

We've reached out to Lawson for comment on the suit ... but, so far, no word back.

Ty was a stud in the NBA for nearly a decade after being picked in the first round of the 2009 NBA Draft ... averaging 12.7 points per game over nine seasons.

Phoenix Suns stud Kelly Oubre Jr. claims his ex-girlfriend stole his two dogs after they broke up in May ... and now, he's suing her.

It's all in a new lawsuit obtained by TMZ Sports, in which the NBA player claims he's having a miserable time breaking things off with his ex, Makena Spooner LeDuff.

Oubre says the two began dating back in mid-2017 when he was a member of the Washington Wizards ... and things were going so well, they stayed together when he was traded to Phoenix in 2018.

In fact, Oubre claims when he rented a place in Beverly Hills shortly after the deal with the Suns ... he allowed her to live there with him.

But, Oubre says things took a terrible turn when the two broke things off in May ... alleging 27-year-old Makena has been a nightmare.

In the lawsuit, Oubre claims she's refused to leave his Bev Hills spot, slashed the tires on his car, stolen some of his stuff ... and worst of all, taken his two beloved dogs.

Oubre says he got the pups -- Saint and Soul -- before he met Makena ... and claims she is now "holding them hostage" in an effort to try to get money from the NBA player.

Oubre says he tried like hell to get them back from her -- even getting the LAPD involved in August -- but says she's successfully avoided returning them to him.

Now, Oubre -- who's in the middle of a 2-year, $30 MILLION contract -- is suing her for damages.

Jeanie Buss is teaming up with Celtics owner Wyc Grousbeck to launch a new tequila company ... but don't worry, Laker Nation -- she still wants to WHOOP that Boston ass!!!

The Lakers owner spoke with TMZ Sports at Catch Steak in NYC about the launch of their new tequila, Cincoro -- along with Michael Jordan and Milwaukee Bucks owner Wes Edens.

Buss says even though all the owners are gettin' chummy and bonding over Cincoro booze, they're all focused on destroying each other when the season comes around.

"Just because we created a tequila doesn't mean I don't wanna beat him on the court ... and that is the whole goal, is to always beat the Celtics," Jeanie says. "And, he knows that and he wants to beat me too!!!"

"This is what the world needs to know, that even the people that you compete with, at the end of the day, you can lay down your swords and come together and be friends and respect each other. It's always important to respect your opponent."

Aww ... that's touching as hell, Jeanie.

Antonio Brown wouldn't answer when asked about an NFL probe into allegations he raped a woman ... telling Patriots media, "I appreciate that question. I'm just here to focus on ball."

The new New England superstar finally met with reporters for the first time since signing with the team earlier this month ... and took a whopping 4 questions from the media.

Altogether, the locker-room presser lasted about a minute ... and Brown sounded more like Bill Belichick when it came to the hard-hitting Qs.

"I'm super grateful to be here, to play for Bill Belichick and Tom Brady," Brown said to the first question about the looming NFL investigation.

"I've got a lot of the offense to learn and catch up. But, I'm excited and grateful to be here and be a part of these guys."

The league is currently trying to figure out what to do with Brown after Britney Taylor alleged he raped her in the Miami area back in 2018.

In her civil lawsuit against the receiver, Taylor also alleges he sexually assaulted her on two separate occasions in the Pittsburgh area in 2017.

BT reportedly met with NFL investigators for 10 HOURS earlier this week ... but so far, no word on what the league is planning to do with Brown after that meeting.

"I don't think that he's done. I can see him in Jacksonville."

Plaxico Burress says he's envisioning a Tom Coughlin-Eli Manning reunion down in Florida ... telling TMZ Sports he's predicting Eli could end up on the Jags at some point this season.

"I don't believe that No. 10 is done," Eli's former favorite receiver says ... "I could see him down in Jacksonville reuniting with the great Tom Coughlin."

Of course, all the stars are aligning to make the move happen. The Jags' starter, Nick Foles, is injured ... and Manning's just been benched in NY for first-round pick Daniel Jones.

Plaxico tells us it just makes sense for Eli to leave New York now, saying, "I would be really happy for him to see that happen."

"I know that the fire still burns for him to go out and compete and to play this game," Burress added.

"I think that his time over in New York may be over, but as far as going somewhere else and playing football, I believe that he can still do that."

We also took a trip down memory lane with Burress ... and he walked us through what it was like going on that final drive with Eli to win Super Bowl XLII over the 18-0 Patriots.

Kevin Durant is clearly recovering well after tearing his Achilles ... TMZ Sports got the guy walking around in NYC this week -- and he's showing no signs of a limp!!!

Of course, it's only been about 12 weeks since the NBA superstar had surgery to fix his right leg ... but from the looks of things, he's healing up nicely.

It's been a pretty crappy few months since he tore his Achilles on June 10 during Game 5 of the 2019 NBA Finals ... we got him shortly after surgery, and he looked pretty miserable.

Even last month, when we shot him walking out of Catch restaurant in L.A. ... he had significant hitch in his giddy up.

But, this week, dude seems to be moving around fine ... which is good news for his new team, the Brooklyn Nets, who inked the guy to a 4-year, $164 MILLION deal!!

Kevin is expected to miss the entire season this year recovering ... but if he keeps healing up this way -- maybe there's a chance Kyrie will be passing him the rock this season after all?

New York Yankees star pitcher Domingo German has been placed on administrative leave while Major League Baseball investigates allegations of domestic violence.

A source tells TMZ Sports the alleged incident happened earlier this week after the Yankees returned from their road trip in Toronto. We're working on more details.

For their part, the Yankees have announced they fully support the MLB's decision saying, "We support this policy which reinforces that domestic violence has no place in our society and cannot be tolerated."

"We have followed the lead of Major League Baseball and will continue to provide our complete cooperation throughout the investigative process."

Under MLB policy, German's stay on Administrative Leave can last up to seven days ... although the league has the power to extend that timeline.

German has been a stud for the Yanks this season, winning 18 games with 153 strikeouts in 143 innings.

The 27-year-old just pitched for New York at Yankees Stadium on Wednesday night ... throwing 2.1 innings and giving up just 1 hit and no runs.

He was expected to be relied on heavily when the Yanks kick off their run toward their 28th World Series championship this October.

Story developing ...

Nike has cut ties with Antonio Brown following claims he raped his personal trainer ... with a rep for the company confirming to TMZ Sports that the NE Patriots superstar is "not a Nike athlete."

While the Swoosh will not elaborate on the decision behind the move ... it comes after Britney Taylor filed a federal lawsuit, alleging Brown forcibly raped her in 2018 ... among other accusations (all of which AB denies).

AB had a signature shoe deal with Nike ... the Nike Tech Trainer Antonio Brown was released in February and sold for $100. The kicks have since been scrubbed from the site.

Brown also lost his deal with helmet manufacturer Xenith last week.

AB signed a 1-year, $15 million deal with the Pats after getting cut by the Raiders on September 7 ... and played his first game with New England during week 2.

We should note, AB was rocking white Nike cleats last Sunday against the Dolphins.

The NY Giants benched Eli Manning, but the teams dreadful 0-2 start ain't his fault ... that blame falls squarely on the team's terrible defense -- so says NYG legend Antrel Rolle.

The D's given up 63 points in their 2 losses (only the Fins have been scored on more) ... and they've allowed 9 TD drives of over 70 yards. They're at or near the bottom of every defensive statistic. They can't stop anyone ... and that's the real issue according to AR.

"Defensively, that's just not it. I'm a guy that's always brutally honest. I give it to them raw. Not saying those guys don't possess talent, but right now I'm seeing one, a lack of leadership, I'm seeing two, lack of identity, and three, a lack of toughness" ... Rolle tells us.

"I don't see any toughness. I don't see them knocking guys over, I don't see them getting in anyone's face. I don't see any nastiness. As a defensive player, you gotta be nasty."

Rolle knows the Giants and he knows defense. He's a former 8th overall pick who made 3 Pro Bowls and was a defensive leader on the Giants squad that beat Tom Brady at Super Bowl 46 in 2012.

We asked Antrel what he'd say to the Giants defense if he was in front of the players.

"I'd have to work on not losing my sh*t."

So, yeah, it's hard for Rolle to watch. But, despite how bad they look on the field, AR says it ain't all bad.

The H.S. wrestler who was forced to cut his dreadlocks before a wrestling match is happy the referee behind the incident was punished... but his attorney tells TMZ Sports the guy should be BANNED for LIFE.

Alan Maloney was suspended 2 seasons by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association on Wednesday ... after telling the 16-year-old Andrew Johnson (who is black) to either cut off his dreadlocks or forfeit a Dec. 2018 match.

The wrestler's attorney, Dominic Speziali, tells TMZ Sports Johnson and his family "welcome" the punishment and call it a win "for the progress of civil rights in New Jersey" ... but feel it could have been more significant.

"The results of the [Division of Civil Rights]'s investigation leaves no doubt that repeatedly disgraced referee Alan Maloney was flat-out wrong in his abhorrent treatment of Andrew."

"It is our opinion that any individual with such a storied history of race-based incidents and continuing questions about his credibility should not face a limited suspension of two-years, but should be permanently barred from officiating."

The family also points out that the investigation determined Maloney lied about the reasoning behind the dread cutting when he claimed Johnson had "tape or rubber bands in his hair" ... which multiple witnesses told investigators was not true.

"With today's announcement, we hope that no athlete going forward will be forced to sacrifice their identity for the opportunity to compete."