TMZ Sports - Page 50

Rams star Bobby Wagner gave security guards a hell of an assist during "Monday Night Football" ... knocking the snot out of a fan who had invaded the field with a smoke bomb in the middle of the game.

The wild scene happened just before halftime of L.A.'s loss to the Niners in Northern California ... when a protester hopped over Levi's Stadium railing and began running wild on the turf.

The man -- holding a smoke bomb that filled the air with pink fumes -- managed to evade stadium staffers for several moments ... until he made his way over to the Rams' sideline.

That's where Wagner buried his shoulder straight into the dude's chest -- leveling him to the grass. Security guards were then able to pile on the guy ... and he was removed without further incident.

The Manning brothers -- Peyton and Eli -- found the whole situation pretty funny while they were in the middle of broadcasting the action ... but Wagner said afterward he had legit concerns that the fan had nefarious intentions.

"We don't know what they're carrying in their pockets," the 32-year-old told media members.

"That's just keeping it safe," he added. "You don't know what that fan got or what they're doing."

Animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere took credit for the scene after the game ... explaining the man, and another protester who had been taken down before reaching the pitch, had hit the field in order to raise awareness for a trial involving the alleged theft of pigs from a factory farm.

The org. said the protesters were cited by police and ultimately released from custody. It added that the man who was tackled by Wagner suffered a burn on his arm.

Famed neuropathologist Bennet Omalu -- the inspiration for the Will Smith "Concussion" movie -- tells TMZ Sports ... Tua Tagovailoa should never play another down in the NFL again after suffering a scary head injury last week.

"If you love your life," Omalu said in a message to the Miami star, "if you love your family, you love your kids -- if you have kids -- it's time to gallantly walk away. Go find something else to do."

Tagovailoa was injured in the second quarter of the Dolphins' loss to the Bengals last Thursday ... and Omalu, who discovered CTE, said from everything he saw on the game's broadcast, he believes the quarterback "suffered severe, long-term permanent brain damage" during the play.

Now, Omalu is pleading with the 24-year-old football player to hang up his cleats forever to avoid sustaining any further damage.

"Tua, my brother. I love you," Omalu said. "I love you as much as I love my son. Stop playing. Stop. Hang your helmet and gallantly walk away."

Tua was rushed to the hospital immediately following the hit, but he was discharged just hours later and flew back to Florida with the team on Thursday night.

On Friday, Tagovailoa told his fans he was "feeling much better" ... and was determined to get back out on the field as soon as possible.

Omalu clearly believes that would be a mistake.

"He should stop," the doctor said. "Sometimes money is not more valuable than human life. $20 billion is not worth more than your brain."

Former NFL running back LeGarrette Blount was involved in a fight at a youth football game on Saturday ... throwing punches in a wild skirmish -- and now, TMZ Sports has learned cops are investigating it all.

The altercation happened following the conclusion of a 12-year-old-and-under game in Gilbert, Arizona.

Blount was coaching the GCYFC Gators against the Elite -- when in the postgame handshake line ... he appeared to take exception to something someone had said to him.

Drone video shows Blount became upset -- and motioned animatedly toward coaches on the opposing team for several moments. Eventually, he grew so irate that he took off in a dead sprint in an attempt to confront someone on the other sideline.

Blount was ultimately restrained -- but footage shot from the field level shows dozens of parents then jumped in between the sidelines and began arguing.

The verbal altercation grew more and more heated -- and that's when Blount ran in and was seen on video throwing two punches at a man in a white T-shirt.

He was pulled away from the area, but others in the crowd continued to argue and squabble. Finally, after several minutes, people dispersed.

Cops tell us they were called to the scene shortly after 7 PM "in relation to multiple reports of adults fighting during a youth football game."

We're told, though, the fight had concluded by the time officers arrived. No injuries were reported.

Police say they are investigating the incident and have described Blount as "an involved party."

Of course, this is not the first time Blount has thrown a right hand on a football field -- he famously clocked Boise State defensive lineman Byron Hout following a 2009 game when he was a member of the Univ. of Oregon football team. He was suspended from the Ducks over it all, but was reinstated later on.

Blount went on to have a solid career in the NFL -- winning three Super Bowl titles while rushing for 56 touchdowns in 132 games.

We reached out to Blount's rep ... so far, no word back.

Adelaide 36ers stars Craig Randall and Robert Franks put the basketball world on notice after beating the Phoenix Suns in a preseason game ... and now, the hoopers tell TMZ Sports they hope their stellar performances eventually lead to NBA jobs.

26-year-old Randall -- the G League's Most Improved Player in 2022 -- led the way with 35 points for the 36ers ... going 9-17 from three and 13-21 overall from the field.

Franks, 25, also added 32 points on 6-10 from three and 11-20 overall ... as the 36ers stunned the Suns, 134-124.

We spoke with Randall and Franks about the big win ... and Randall says while the rest of the world was shocked with the end result, they weren't.

"We came out, we did what we thought that we could do and we wanted to do and the outcome turned in our favor," the former Memphis and UT Martin star tell us.

Franks -- who played college ball at Washington State -- says the 36ers have had several practices recently where all the players were constantly hitting their shots ... so they knew if they were able to click during a game, it would be bad news for their opponents.

"Last night, we all got clicking and it got scary," the former Orlando Magic player added. "That feeling was crazy, just to feed off each other."

Both Randall and Franks make it clear they're proud to be members of the Adelaide 36ers organization ... but naturally, they see their preseason games as an opportunity to show NBA scouts what they can really do on the court -- and they hope they get that shot one day.

Gisele Bündchen is still riding solo in South Beach -- the supermodel was spotted at a Miami gym by herself Monday morning ... days after she and Tom Brady reportedly decided to remain separated during Hurricane Ian.

Gisele and Brady were forced to evacuate Tampa Bay as the tropical storm arrived last week ... but not even Ian could bring the two back together amid their alleged rift, according to Page Six.

While Brady returned to Tampa for the Buccaneers' home loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, Gisele elected to stay south and pass on watching her husband in person ... which shouldn't come as a surprise, considering she's been MIA at all Bucs games this season.

TMZ Sports obtained pics of Gisele at the gym earlier Monday ... showing the model rocking black leggings and a sports bra as she appears to have a serious conversation on her iPhone.

Gisele wasn't wearing her wedding ring for the workout -- but that's not a clue about her marriage status ... she rarely wore the thing even before their rough patch.

As for Brady, things haven't been going great for him on the field either -- the Bucs lost, 41-31 in the Week 4 matchup ... falling to 2-2 on the season.

Brian Robinson's road to recovery after a horrifying shooting incident is nearly complete -- Commanders head coach Ron Rivera just announced the running back has been medically cleared ... and could make his NFL debut this weekend.

Rivera said Robinson -- who was shot twice in August during an attempted carjacking in D.C. -- will officially jump into Washington practice on Wednesday ... and if all goes well, there's a "very good chance" he plays against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday.

Rivera said the team will be cautious with the 23-year-old rookie ... but docs have told him there's no need to place restrictions on the back's workload -- at least not initially.

"We'll see how he handles it," Rivera said. "We've got to see how he reacts to contact 'cause we will have a padded practice on Wednesday. He'll get to bump around a little bit -- and we'll see how he handles that and then we'll go from there."

The Commanders picked Robinson in the third round of this year's NFL draft. He had impressed in the preseason, appearing to earn the team's starting tailback role coming out of training camp.

However, he was shot in the glute and the lower leg on Aug. 28 -- and has been fighting to get healthy and back to the field since.

But, Rivera told media members Robinson has passed every test so far, and he's "optimistic" Robinson will be available Sunday.

Devin Booker is clapping back at the haters after the Suns lost to an Australian basketball team on Sunday ... by posting LeBron James' infamous reaction to losing the 2011 NBA Finals.

Booker and the Suns -- who played all five starters -- lost to the Adelaide 36ers, 134-124, in their first preseason game ... the first time an NBA team lost to a National Basketball League team.

After the L, Book posted a screenshot of LeBron's viral speech following the Heat's Finals loss ... adding the caption, "Mood."

Remember, LBJ was asked if he was bothered by fans rooting for his downfall ... and the King offered an honest, candid response -- but it was met with backlash for how it came across.

"At the end of the day, all the people that's rooting for me to fail, they have to wake up tomorrow and have the same life that they had before they woke up today," James said.

"They can get a few days or a few months on being happy about not only myself but the Miami Heat not accomplishing their goal, but they have to get back to the real world at some point."

James would clarify his comments a few days later ... stating he wasn't saying he was superior to others, but rather everyone has to move on with their lives, good or bad.

Tua Tagovailoa won't be under center when the Dolphins take on the Jets this Sunday, the team just announced, after the 24-year-old QB sustained a brutal hit to the head on Thursday Night Football.

Mike McDaniel, the Fins' first-year head coach, told media Monday Tua was still in concussion protocol and was out for the week 5 clash with the division rival Jets.

Of course, Tagovailoa was on the receiving end of two brutal hits within a five-day period.

The first came during Sunday's week 3 game against the Bills, when Tua was slammed to the ground, appearing to hit his head. He attempted to stand up, but wobbled, falling to the ground. Many experts say it was a clear-cut sign of a concussion ... but team officials insisted it was actually a back injury.

Then, just days later during "Thursday Night Football," a nationally televised game against the Bengals, Tua again took a huge hit to the head. The former 5th overall pick lay on the ground, hands "postured," unconscious. Medical staff rushed out, removed Tua's facemask, put him on a stretcher, and took him to the hospital.

Tagovailoa was released later that night ... and flew back to Miami with his teammates on the team plane.

We spoke to traumatic brain injury expert, Chris Nowinski, last week after the second injury ... and the former football player and WWE Superstar told us Tua shouldn't play again this season, and should consider never playing for the Dolphins again after the handling of the injuries.

It's not just Nowinski who believes the situation was handled inappropriately ... in fact, the NFL-NFLPA are conducting a joint investigation aimed at looking at what went down behind the scenes with Tua's injuries.

Coach McDaniel was asked about the inquiry ... and he says the organization will be an open book.

Niners wideout Ray-Ray McCloud will channel Bow Wow's Calvin Cambridge for "Monday Night Football" -- TMZ Sports has learned he's copped a pair of custom "Like Mike" cleats for the big contest against the Rams!!

The 25-year-old receiver hit up Joe Castro to get the movie-themed spikes done ... and we're told after the Cali artist spent about 10 hours making them, they're now set to arrive just in time for kickoff.

The Nike Untouchable Speed 3 cleats painted in 49ers' gold and red came out pretty sweet -- with both shoes featuring depictions of Bow Wow from the movie.

"Like Mike" is also written on the cleats as well.

If you haven't seen it ... the 2002 film is a classic -- it features an orphan named Calvin Cambridge (played by Bow Wow) who becomes an NBA superstar after wearing a pair of sneakers he found that once belonged to Michael Jordan.

Several H.S. football players in California were booted from their team after filming a racist prank where they sold their Black teammates at a "slave auction," TMZ Sports has learned ... and now the team has been forced to forfeit the entire year over a lack of eligible players.

Once the district got word of the video, made by members of the River Valley H.S. (CA) FB team, which was apparently meant to be funny, they acted swiftly ... kicking off the offending players for violating the student-athlete code of conduct.

"Re-enacting a slave sale as a prank tells us that we have a great deal of work to do with our students so they can distinguish between intent and impact," Yuba City Unified School District Superintendent Doreen Osumi wrote.

"They may have thought this skit was funny, but it is not; it is unacceptable and requires us to look honestly and deeply at issues of systemic racism."

Osumi said the students will be disciplined, but it's as much about teaching, too ... "education, honest, open discussions and instruction will guide our students to realize that their choices and actions have consequences."

The superintendent said the district is working to make sure the student body can learn from this situation -- adding she sees this as an opportunity for students to be more "aware, thoughtful, and considerate of others."

“When students find humor in something that is so deeply offensive, it tells me that we have an opportunity to help them expand their mindset," Osumi said.

River Valley hadn't exactly gotten off to the best start. They were 0-6, according to Max Preps. Football season in California usually kicks off mid-August, and with the playoffs, can go through mid-December.

How'd you like to get punched in the face and tossed over a row of seats in the nosebleeds at Petco Park ... all while a mariachi band played on the field!

Oh, and someone was recording.

The crazy scene went down during the San Diego Padres-Chicago White Sox game on Sunday ... when an innocent fan started recording as the band began performing. That's when the fan noticed the fight ... and turned the camera on the two men who had squared off.

The fight didn't last long ... one of the men threw a bomb that landed on the other guy's head. With the punched fan stunned, the guy who delivered the right hook then pushed the injured guy over the row of seats in front of them.

Other people tried to intervene ... and for his trouble, that guy got thrown over his seat, too.

The whole melee caused panic in the section ... fans were fleeing the area, hoping to avoid catching an errant punch.

This latest fight comes just a few days after another brawl happened at Petco ... where Padres and Los Angeles Dodgers fans went at it right in the stands.

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar says Kyrie Irving has done something "more destructive, insensitive, and just plain silly" than his COVID-19 vax stance ... going off on the NBA superstar for sharing a controversial Alex Jones video on social media.

The Brooklyn Nets guard came under fire last month after reposting a 2002 clip of the "InfoWars" host ranting about a New World Order that would release plagues into society for financial gain ... which featured the caption "Alex Jones Tried To Warn Us."

Irving's Jones endorsement came weeks after the talking head apologized in court for claiming the Sandy Hook shooting was a hoax ... so the timing was a bit odd to say the least.

Now, KAJ is weighing in on Irving's actions ... saying if it weren't for young basketball fans, he'd be "dismissed as a comical buffoon."

"Alex Jones is one of the most despicable human beings alive and to associate with him means you share his stench," the Lakers legend said on his website.

"When I look at some of the athletes who have used their status to actually improve society-- Colin Kaepernick, LeBron James, Muhammad Ali, Bill Russell, Billie Jean King, Arthur Ashe, and more -- it becomes clear how much Irving has tarnished the reputations of all athletes who strive to be seen as more than dumb jocks."

Abdul-Jabbar says people shouldn't just scoff at Irving -- there should be action -- and he wants those outraged to write to the All-Star's sponsors to demand they cut ties with him.

"Irving does not seem to have the capacity to change, but we have the capacity to keep fighting against his brand of destructive behavior."

FYI -- Irving's deal with Nike is most likely up after this season, but KAJ points out he still has deals with Pepsi and 2K Sports.

Sean Avery has been involved in yet another spat with his neighbors ... this time he was so irate over the way they parked their cars on a street near his home, he threatened to snap their windshield wipers.

TMZ Sports has learned ... the dispute all went down last Thursday in Hollywood Hills, when the former NHL player confronted a couple people, including teenagers, over some vehicles that were stopped on the street.

Avery -- who said he was house-sitting for someone who lived on the block -- was clearly livid with everyone, explaining he believed the cars were parked illegally. He demanded they move them at once.

The neighbors, though, weren't happy with the way he approached them about it all -- and a massive argument in the street ensued for several minutes.

At one point during the feud, Avery said, "The next time one of you guys parks your cars there, I'm going to snap your windshield wipers off. One-hundred percent. One-hundred percent. Ask around!"

He later added to one of the men who was filming the squabble, "Dude. You're too f***ing short to actually, like, try and challenge anyone. Just shut up."

Multiple times during the argument Avery called some of the men an offensive term for little people.

We're told the tiff eventually died down without further incident. Cops were not called.

Of course, this is not the first time Avery has been filmed being upset with someone near his home ... just last year, he broke a man's car mirror after he claimed the guy hit him while he was jogging in the street.

Seahawks star DK Metcalf avoided a crappy situation on Sunday ... being carted off the field during the Lions game to make sure he made it to the toilet in time for an emergency bathroom break!!

Metcalf had to go No. 2 right in the middle of Seattle's Sunday contest with Detroit ... and it apparently came on so strong -- he needed a personal escort to the lavatory at Ford Field.

Metcalf hopped on a cart to make the expedited run to the John -- and, fortunately for the wideout, the plan seemed to work out OK for him ... because he returned a few minutes later in good shape.

Metcalf joked about it all on Twitter following the game ... saying, "That clinch walk wouldn't have made it." He added a crying emoji.

Despite the awkward scene, Metcalf ended up having a hell of a day ... racking up seven catches for 149 yards in a big 48-45 Seahawks win.

A man attending the Steelers game on Sunday has tragically died -- after officials say the fan fell from an escalator at the Pittsburgh stadium.

The Pittsburgh Department of Public Safety said police and EMS responded to Acrisure Stadium at around 4:45 PM -- moments after the Steelers had lost to the Jets -- after receiving a "fall from height" call.

When they arrived on scene, they said they immediately tended to the man ... before transporting him to a local hospital.

Sadly, officials say he later died there from his injuries. The man's ID has yet to be released.

The Steelers said in a statement Sunday night they were aware of the situation and "are working with local authorities and helping their investigation into the matter."

Vanessa Bryant went to the Bad Bunny concert in L.A. this weekend -- and it seems two's all the company she needed for premier box seats.

The widow of the late Kobe Bryant was seen attending the show at SoFi Stadium Saturday, and she ended up getting her own VIP suite ... with just a few people on hand. It was her, a female friend and a few security guards who were also tagging along.

We're told the suites go for around $25k or so -- and based on the footage, it seems she was enjoying it mostly to herself and her gal pal. Unclear who the other woman was, though.

You can tell she was trying to keep a low profile, not wanting to photographed or filmed on the way out -- with her bodyguards shielding her. It seems she might've actually been rolling solo when it was all said and done ... you don't see the other lady with her at the end here.

Eyewitnesses tell us she made the most of it nonetheless. We're told she stayed through the whole thing -- catching Cardi B's guest performance, too, no doubt -- and enjoyed the smorgasbord of eats, even dancing a bit apparently.

Remember, she's fresh off a tough court case that she won ... so it's good to see her out.