TMZ Sports - Page 50

The Steelers have placed Ben Roethlisberger on the COVID-19 list ... but it's NOT because he tested positive.

The 38-year-old QB is reportedly considered a "high-risk, close contact" person -- after Steelers tight end Vance McDonald tested positive for COVID on Monday.

Along with Big Ben, 3 other Steelers were placed on the COVID list for possible exposure -- offensive lineman Jerald Hawkins, running back Jaylen Samuels and linebacker Vince William.

Long story short ... Ben and his 3 teammates will have to isolate for the next 5 days -- and if test results come back negative, they should all be good to play against the Bengals on Sunday.

Until then, the players are not allowed inside the Steelers facility.

As for Vance McDonald, his situation is different since he tested positive on Monday -- he could be required to miss more time, depending on other test results and other factors.

If McDonald was experiencing symptoms -- he must isolate for at least 10 days ... and have 72 hours with no symptoms before he could be allowed to return to the team.

LSU football player Koy Moore claims he was "violated numerous times" during a police stop over the weekend ... alleging serious officer misconduct -- and now, cops are investigating.

The Tigers freshman posted a statement Sunday saying he was scared for his life after officers stopped him Saturday night.

In his statement, which Moore shared on social media, the wide receiver claimed cops approached him with their guns drawn -- insisting he had a weapon and drugs on him.

Moore says even though he denied their claims ... cops still tried "to unzip my pants in search of a weapon that I repeatedly told them I did not have."

Moore says he tried to take out his phone to film the officers ... but he claims they "snatched" the device from him before he could start recording.

"I could've lost my life and I know for a fact nothing would've happened to the guys who did it," Moore said.

Moore claims he was only able to get out of the situation because he explained to the officers he played football for LSU.

"If I didn't tell those incompetent officers that I was a LSU football player there's no telling if I would've been here to tell the story!" Moore said.

LSU head coach Ed Orgeron said Sunday he was aware of Moore's allegations ... and added the school and the Baton Rouge Police Dept. are now investigating the incident.

"While I cannot comment on the investigation, what I can say is that we must work collectively to embrace our differences," Orgeron said.

"We have to listen, learn and come together to combat social injustice and racism if we are to create a safer and more equitable society for all people."

We've reached out the BRPD for comment, but so far, no word back yet.

Moore was a touted recruit out of Louisiana in 2020 ... he was a four-star prospect who chose LSU over schools like USC, Auburn and Florida.

Moore has 8 catches for 70 yards so far in his first season with the program.

WARNING: THIS IS KIND OF GROSS!!

Tennessee Titans star Taylor Lewan showed off the scar he now has after docs cut open his knee to fix his torn ACL ... and the damage caused by the scalpel is GNARLY!!

Lewan suffered the initial injury back on Oct. 18 against the Houston Texans ... and he recently went under the knife to get the whole thing fixed.

And, in an effort to keep all of his followers in the loop on his recovery process ... he decided to reveal what the post-surgery damage looked like.

In the pic Lewan posted Monday night, you can see the scar is long -- running about 7 inches from just above his knee cap to just below it.

The wound is still bloody, too -- and it, unfortunately, went right through a dope tattoo the 29-year-old had.

But, Lewan stayed positive nonetheless, captioning his pic, "Stitches out today!!"

"I think he has lost his marbles"

That's Tyson Fury shooting down Deontay Wilder's claim that he CHEATED during the Feb. rematch ... saying Wilder just can't accept that he got his ass kicked.

Two weeks ago, Wilder didn't mince words -- accusing Tyson Fury of hiding weights in his gloves to increase the impact of his punches during their Feb. 22 fight.

"I highly believe you put something hard in your glove," Wilder said on video ... "Something the shape and size of an egg weight."

Wilder believes the foreign object caused his face to "swell up in the shape of an egg weight and it left a dent in my face as well."

A boxer accusing another boxer of loading up his gloves is a major allegation -- especially with no real proof.

But now, Fury is firing back ... claiming it's just another pathetic excuse from Wilder, who already tried to name the loss on his pre-fight costume, among other things.

"First of all it was the suit, then it was the bicep injury, then his trainer was on our team, then the referee was against him, then I had weights in my gloves," Fury told TalkSport.

"Now someone has spiked his water ... it’s one of those things, isn’t it?"

Fury is also addressing Wilder's claim that he's refusing to take a 3rd fight -- staying, it's Deontay who's pushing the dates.

"The original date was July 18," Fury said ... "That didn’t happen because he had an injury so it got put back 3 months to October. Then that didn’t happen because they were trying to get a venue."

Beyonce and Peloton have teamed up on a multi-year deal that will bring a series of themed workouts paying homage to historically black colleges and universities ... and the timing couldn't be better.

Playing off "Homecoming" -- her iconic Coachella concert film -- Beyonce's helped create cycling, running, strength, boot camp, yoga and meditation classes with Peloton to commemorate the annual fall Homecoming season at HBCUs. The singer was already the most requested artist among the fitness company's 3.6 million members, so the collab makes total sense.

In addition ... Bey and Peloton are gifting 2-year digital memberships to students at 10 different HBCUs, which provide access to the fitness classes through the Peloton App that can be used with or without equipment.

Along with the big partnership coming during homecoming season, the timing's also huge for the company ... in the stock market. As you may know, Peloton use has surged during the pandemic, but its shares took a hit Monday with the announcement of the Pfizer vaccine ... dropping 20 percent.

With the Beyonce news, shares jumped as much as 7 percent early Tuesday.

As for the Queen, she says she's been a Peloton member for years and is excited to partner with a company providing an innovative way for all people to "be the best versions of themselves."

She adds ... "I'm proud to celebrate the students at HBCUs with this donation, to encourage them to find and embrace their own wellness regimens."

Kobe Bryant's childhood home in Pennsylvania -- where the late basketball legend spent countless hours working on his skills -- has just sold for $810k, TMZ Sports has learned.

The Black Mamba lived in the 5-bed, 3 1/2-bath, Philadelphia-area home during his teenage years ... when he quickly became one of the best hoopers in the country, leading his Lower Merion HS team to a state title in 1996.

The Bryant family parted ways with the home in 2008 ... and it hit the market again this past September for $899k.

According to records, the home closed on Nov. 6 ... and sold for $810k. David Wyher and TJ Sokso of Compass represented the listing.

Of course, $810k is a pretty symbolic number -- Kobe's forever tied to #81 after his iconic 81-point performance against the Toronto Raptors on Jan 22, 2006.

The home is beautiful, but the most sentimental part has to be the hoop ... which is the same one Bryant used before becoming one of the best players to ever pick up a ball.

Unclear on what the buyer plans to do with the hoop ... but it's gotta be worth a fortune -- Kobe memorabilia like his Lakers championship rings to game-worn shoes and autographed hardwood from his last NBA game have sold for huge numbers at auctions since his death.

Bryant and his daughter, Gianna, were among 9 killed in a helicopter crash in Jan. 2020.

No word on who bought the iconic home ... but one thing's for sure -- they *had* to know the significance of the place.

Tony La Russa has been charged with DUI stemming from a February incident ... where he allegedly crashed his car in Phoenix and was "argumentative" with police.

The 76-year-old -- who was just hired to manage the Chicago White Sox -- allegedly hit a curb just before midnight on Feb. 24 ... which apparently wrecked his tire.

Cops were called to the scene and found La Russa standing next to his SUV ... which was still smoking, according to court docs obtained by ESPN.

La Russa reportedly smelled like alcohol -- and told the responding officer he had recently left a dinner with some old pals with the Los Angeles Angels.

According to the report, La Russa told the officer his tire had blown out -- but the cop didn't exactly believe Tony's story and conducted a field sobriety test.

La Russa was "argumentative" -- and refused to take a breathalyzer or willingly offer a blood sample to measure his blood-alcohol level, according to the court docs.

Now, prosecutors are moving forward with DUI charges and if convicted, he could face jail time ... though it's unlikely in this particular case.

La Russa has a previous DUI conviction stemming from a 2007 incident in Jupiter, Florida ... but since it's been more than 7 years, it wouldn't be a factor in his current DUI case, under Arizona law.

Former college basketball star Austin Daye is paying tribute to the late Nipsey Hussle ... by honoring the rap legend with a massive back tattoo.

The 32-year-old pro hooper -- a massive Nip fan -- revealed the new ink on Monday ... which also features an image of Malcolm X and Muhammad Ali.

Daye hit up tattoo artist Juan D Castaño for the job ... and we're assuming it took hours to finish the piece, which also features a "The Marathon Continues" flag.

Of course, the TMC slogan was Nip's motto ... and followers have carried his message since his passing in March 2019.

The former NBA first-round pick joins ballers like Jordan Clarkson and J.R. Smith ... who have both dedicated serious real estate to the L.A. MC.

FYI -- Daye has been tearing it up overseas. He's currently playing for Reyer Venezia and won the Italian Cup MVP in 2020.

The family of the man who was struck and killed by Jim Boeheim in a tragic 2019 car crash is now suing the hoops coach ... claiming the Syracuse legend was responsible for the man’s death.

It's all in a new lawsuit obtained by TMZ Sports ... in which Jorge Jiminez's family is going after Boeheim after they say the 75-year-old coach is to blame for Jiminez's death.

In the suit, Jiminez's family says Boeheim "was travelling at a high rate of speed and/or was otherwise negligent in the operation of the vehicle" ... which they claim led to the tragedy.

As we previously reported, Boeheim was on his way home from dinner on Feb. 20, 2019 at around 11 PM when cops say he encountered a disabled vehicle in the middle of Route 690 in the City of Syracuse.

Cops say when Boeheim swerved to dodge the car ... he accidentally struck and killed Jiminez, who had just exited the broken down ride.

Cops launched an investigation into the incident ... and while they ultimately found Boeheim was going 11 MPH over the 55 MPH speed limit prior to the wreck -- they classified it all as a "tragic accident" and declined to move forward with charges.

Now though, Jiminez's family clearly wants Boeheim to pay up for his role in the incident ... suing both the coach and Syracuse University for unspecified damages.

Neither the school nor Boeheim commented on the lawsuit Monday.

Victoria's Secret model Josephine Skriver happens to be a hardcore Las Vegas Raiders fan.

She also couldn't attend the game this weekend because no fans were allowed at SoFi Stadium due to the whole COVID pandemic -- so she watched at home instead. In her undies.

AND, GUESS WHAT? THE RAIDERS WON!

The Silver & Black took on the Chargers in L.A. -- and for Raiders fans, this game was a big deal ... the rivalry goes back decades!

Skriver didn't want to miss it -- so she cleared her schedule, busted out her lucky outfit ... and the rest is history.

The Raiders ended up delivering the W in a 31 to 26 thriller -- and after the victory, she was pretty fired up.

"WE WON!!!," Skriver said afterward... "OMG OMG OMG HOLY ******."

Atlanta Falcons star Takk McKinley's Twitter fingers just cost him a chunk of change ... with the team reportedly fining the defensive end over his recent Twitter outburst.

McKinley -- a 2017 first-rounder -- seemingly called the Falcons front office clowns after the trade deadline this week ... claiming the team should have pulled the trigger when he wanted out of town last season.

"These @AtlantaFalcons turned down a 2nd round draft pick when I requested to get traded last year," Takk tweeted Wednesday.

"The same @AtlantaFalcons turned down a 5th and 6th round draft pick from multiple teams when I requested to get traded this year. I only have 17.5 career sacks."

"🤡🤡🤡"

While the team denied any actual offer was presented, interim head coach Raheem Morris made it clear he was NOT happy about McKinley's decision to air out his frustrations on Twitter.

"Takk will definitely be held accountable for his actions and everything that goes with it," the coach said.

Now, we know what that means ... with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporting Takk was fined an undisclosed amount for the tweets.

Whether the two sides will be able to make up is doubtful -- the team has already declined his 5th-year option and hasn't ruled out cutting McKinley's playing time or suspending him.

As for Takk's tweet ... it's still live on his account.

No regrets??

President-elect Joe Biden can Make Syracuse Football Great Again ... so says head coach Dino Babers, who believes #46's ties to the school will help BIG with recruitment.

Biden is a proud Orange alum -- he received his law degree from 'Cuse in 1968 and became the first Orangeman to be elected POTUS.

Babers was asked about Biden winning the presidency following the Orange's 16-13 loss to Boston College ... and he thinks the impact will trickle onto the field.

"To have the opportunity to be the head football coach at the university where the president-elect graduated from, I think is huge," Babers told reporters.

"Not only is it a huge honor, but I think it’s a huge recruiting advantage when you go around the country and say, 'Hey, come to Syracuse University. You can be a president of the United States."

Babers also says he hopes to meet the president-elect someday .. calling the opportunity "extremely cool."

Dave Roberts is finally speaking out about the Justin Turner COVID drama at the World Series ... admitting everyone involved "could've all done things differently and done better."

The Dodgers manager broke down his feelings on the matter with KTLA on Monday ... relenting his team dropped the ball on the handling of the situation.

"This is new to all of us," Roberts said. "So, I think emotions got the best of all of us."

Turner was pulled in the 7th inning of the Dodgers' Game 6 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays last month after tests revealed he was positive for coronavirus.

The 35-year-old 3rd baseman initially was sent into isolation ... but he came out of it just a short time later, saying in a statement last week that he believed he was given permission to take the field for photos with the World Series trophy.

MLB concluded its investigation into the matter and decided to NOT punish either the Dodgers or JT over it all ... but acknowledged everyone involved should've done more to keep Turner from exposing others.

While Roberts appeared to agree with the sentiment Monday ... he added he's still glad Turner got to relish in the title celebration regardless.

"I'm a cancer survivor," Roberts said. "I sat next to him. And, so, I don't apologize for that."

Ex-Houston Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow is suing his former team for more than $22 MILLION -- claiming he was wrongly made the scapegoat for the cheating scandal despite having nothing to do with it.

53-year-old Luhnow -- who was hired by the Astros in 2011 -- says he signed a deal with the team in 2018 that included $31 million in guaranteed compensation in addition to performance bonuses.

But, when the team fired him for cause following an investigation into allegations the team conducted a high-tech sign-stealing system in 2017 ... Luhnow claims he got screwed out of a ton of money, more than $22 million.

In his breach of contract lawsuit, Luhnow claims the Astros fired him "even though [he] had no knowledge of -- or involvement in -- the sign-stealing schemes."

He adds, "Yet everyone above and below Luhnow in the Astros organization came away unscathed" -- including the "video room employees who conceived and orchestrated the sign stealing system."

Luhnow claims the "investigation" -- which he puts in quotes in his suit -- was "deeply flawed" and wrongly made him a scapegoat, claiming he had knowledge of they scheme.

"The truth is the Astros had no basis to fire Luhnow, a respected executive with an unblemished record and a 16 year history of compliance with MLB rules."

The Astros fired Luhnow in January 2020 -- after the MLB report was released.

He was hit with a 1-year ban -- same as manager A.J. Hinch -- but Luhnow has not been hired by another team.

Hinch, on the other hand, was just hired to manage the Detroit Tigers.

Logan Ryan made the interception that won the game for the NY Giants on Sunday -- and he's giving the game ball to his wife.

What a week.

As we previously reported, Logan's wife, Ashley, underwent emergency surgery last week for an ectopic pregnancy (which is when the fertilized egg implants in the Fallopian tube instead of the uterus).

Ashley didn't know she was pregnant and only went to the doctor at the suggestion of a NY Giants medical trainer.

She is recovering and doing well but doctors were not able to save the pregnancy.

Despite the traumatic week, Ryan -- a defensive back for the G-Men -- decided to play Sunday against the Washington Football Team ... and was awarded the team ball for picking off Alex Smith in the 4th quarter to seal a 23-20 victory.

After the game, Ryan opened up about his "extremely emotional week" -- and gave an update on his wife's condition.

"[I'm] extremely grateful to the organization and to my wife," Logan said ... "She's a fighter."

"For her ... not to lose her there in that situation is very fortunate."

"At the same time, my wife and I mourn in silence of our lost child during that process to so we had a loss as well. Although it's a great story, it was an emotional week for me and her and that game is definitely for my wife, definitely for my family."

Logan says he had his wife's name written on his cleats on Sunday -- and when was thinking about her the whole day.

In fact, Logan says Ashley told him to go out there, BALL OUT and earn a game ball -- and that's exactly what he did.

The Dallas Cowboys took another loss on Sunday ... but at least D-lineman Antwaun Woods left the weekend a winner -- TMZ Sports has learned his weed case was just dismissed in court.

The 27-year-old NFLer was pulled over back on Dec. 3, 2019 in Frisco, Texas after cops say he was doing 77 MPH in a 60.

Officers said during the stop they smelled weed on Woods ... and eventually, they claim to have found a grip of marijuana in his car.

According to the police report, Woods had 2 glass mason jars and a small gold cylinder container full of weed, along with several pieces of drug paraphernalia.

In video of the stop, obtained by TMZ Sports, you can see a cop told the Cowboys player outright, "Listen, you've got too much marijuana, OK?"

Woods was ultimately arrested and charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana ... but court records show the case was dismissed last Friday.

Unclear why the charge was dropped ... we're working on it.

We've reached out to both the Collin County DA and Woods' attorney ... but so far, no word back yet.