TMZ Sports - Page 50

"Just chill out a little bit. It's a game."

That's Aaron Rodgers responding to the IDIOTS who made death threats at Packers WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling -- reminding everyone to CALM THE HELL DOWN.

Remember, Valdes-Scantling had a costly fumble in overtime against the Colts on Sunday -- and it ultimately led to Green Bay losing an important game.

After the game, MVS got death threats from morons on social media. The WR clapped back at the time saying, "Death threats over a football game? Jesus you people need help. It’s actually sick."

Enter Aaron Rodgers ... who was asked about the situation Tuesday on the "The Pat McAfee Show" -- where he went off on the lunatics behind the threats.

"Anybody who is so distraught about this that they need to go to Twitter and talk about killing someone, I would suggest that you relax," Rodgers said.

He continued, "It’s a game. We’re all trying our best. We’re trying to entertain you, but we’re also trying to do our best because we have a lot of pride in our performance."

"Nobody’s trying to do anything to f*ck up our season or your precious watching experience."

Rodgers said MVS is, in fact, one of the most productive wideouts he's EVER played with ... and the QB made it clear Valdes-Scantling is integral to the Packers' success -- despite his late turnover against Indianapolis.

"Hey baby boy, if you leave -- I'm still gonna love you!"

That's what one Wizards fan told John Wall straight to his face at a food giveaway in D.C. on Tuesday amid rumors Wall wants out of Washington.

Wall -- along with volunteers from the John Wall Family Foundation -- handed out 1,000 free meals to people in the D.C. area. He also blessed 150 families with $25 gift cards for groceries.

The fans showered Wall with love for hosting the event -- and Wall told the fans how much he loves working with the community in D.C.

But, the topic on everyone's mind ... is John Wall leaving?

There are reports Wall wants out of the organization that took him with the #1 overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft.

He repeatedly told reporters "no comment" when asked about the situation.

But, he couldn't help but crack a smile when the fans heaped praise on Wall for everything he's done in D.C. over the last decade.

The Weeknd's Grammys snub had nothing to do with him playing the Super Bowl ... at least according to the Recording Academy Chief.

Harvey Mason Jr. -- interim President and CEO of the Academy -- says, "We understand that The Weeknd is disappointed at not being nominated. I was surprised and can empathize with what he’s feeling. His music this year was excellent."

He adds, the Grammys had no issue with him performing at the Super Bowl and would have loved to have him also perform for the awards show. TMZ broke the story ... negotiations for The Weeknd's Grammy performance got nasty, and our sources say he was issued an ultimatum -- play for us or the Super Bowl.

As for Weeknd receiving zero nominations -- Mason claims there was nothing nefarious to it. He says, "To be clear, voting in all categories ended well before The Weeknd’s performance at the Super Bowl was announced, so in no way could it have affected the nomination process."

As we reported ... it was revealed The Weeknd would be doing the SB Halftime Show on Nov. 12. The Grammys point out its voting deadline for noms was in October. Mason is adamant nobody was upset about the prospect of the singer performing at both events ... because the Grammys happens first.

Mason also says he's "saddened" over The Weeknd and his team saying "The Grammys remain corrupt." He says ... "I try to empathize with where that came from, but it was difficult to hear."

Despite the apparent damage control, it appears this controversy's not going away anytime soon. The Weeknd's manager, Sal Slaiby, also slammed "corrupt leaders" at the Grammys and demanded transparency.

Tommy Lasorda's recovery is moving in the right direction -- he's now taking phone calls in his hospital room from friends and former players!

The 93-year-old is still being treated at a hospital in Orange County, CA -- where he was admitted roughly 2 weeks ago.

We broke the story, Lasorda was initially admitted due to heart issues ... but things took a turn for the worse while he was there, and he needed to be put on a ventilator. We're told the issues were NOT coronavirus related.

At the time, sources close to the situation told us Lasorda's long-term prognosis was not clear ... given his age and medical issues.

But now, a great update courtesy of Dodgers spokesperson Steve Brener who told the AP things are looking up!

Brener says Tommy is taking "online calls" from former players and coaches -- which is great because Lasorda is widely known as a social butterfly who loves choppin' it up with people!

Hopefully, he'll continue to make progress and get home soon!

Lasorda is widely known as one of the greatest MLB managers EVER -- the dude won 1,599 games in 21 years as the Dodgers' honcho ... and earned Manager Of The Year honors twice.

Don't dig a grave for Tim Tebow's MLB career just yet ... HE'S COMING BACK TO THE METS IN 2021!

... so says Mets president Sandy Alderson who made it clear the franchise isn't ready to move on from the former NFL quarterback.

Remember, the minor league baseball season was scrapped in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic -- leaving players like 33-year-old Tebow contemplating his baseball future.

But, Alderson said he spoke with Tebow over the weekend -- and it seems they reached an agreement to resume the Tim Tebow experiment next season.

"He’s anxious to come back," Alderson told the NY Post.

"And I told Tim, ‘Look, why would you want to end your quest based on a COVID-related reason? You didn’t get a chance to perform this year.’ He was hurt a little bit the previous year. So I think Tim is committed to coming back. And I think we’re committed to giving him an opportunity to do that and we’ll see where it goes."

Alderson says both sides realize Tim's baseball career will end at some point -- but that time isn't now!

"This is not a quest without end. At some point it will culminate. But I think that will be at a time when Tim and the organization come to some agreement about where he is and what his potential is. But I didn’t want him to go out based on some COVID-related interruption."

Tebow signed his deal with the NY Mets in 2016 -- and while it's been fun to watch him compete, his numbers haven't exactly been stellar -- he's only batting .223 in his 3 minor league seasons.

He spent a short stint at the Triple-A level in 2019 -- but didn't exactly shine there either ... with a .163 batting average in 264 plate appearances.

After spending three seasons in the NFL, Tebow decided to give baseball a shot. He was signed by the Mets in 2016 and has moved up through the team’s minor-league system. Tebow reached Triple-A briefly in 2019, and will likely begin 2021 at that level.

Tebow recently spoke about his baseball career to MLB.com -- acknowledging the end could be near.

"It’s not something that I want to do forever," Tebow said ... "because there’s a lot of other things that are in my heart that I want to pursue."

Terrible news for hoops fans hoping to see Michael Jordan and LaVar Ball face off on the court ... the Big Baller is calling off a 1-on-1 game, saying they're just too old!!

It was a rare moment of humility from LaVar, who has been hyping up a mano-a-mano matchup with the GOAT for years.

But, at the Ball fam's turkey giveaway in South Central L.A. on Tuesday, LaVar told us straight-up -- it's not happening.

"Realistically, neither one of us is gonna do this," LaVar told TMZ Sports. "We over 50!"

Don't get it twisted -- LaVar joked both guys would be down if it came with a crazy price tag of $200 MILLION and at a crazy location like the Empire State Building ... but in reality, the only one getting the W is father time.

As we previously reported ... LaVar's son, LaMelo was just drafted by MJ's Charlotte Hornets -- which is why people thought the two could actually step on the court together.

But, now that LaVar's pulled off the game, we asked if he's chopped it up with his son's new boss and maybe smoked a cigar or 50 together.

By the way ... MJ will def consider this video a victory -- he's an insane competitor and would never say he's too old for anything.

There's more ... we also spoke with LaVar about the Balls unloading a semi-truck-worth of supplies for the Thanksgiving holiday ... and why it's so important for the family to give back to the community.

The Weeknd was faced with a tough choice -- perform the Grammys or the Super Bowl -- but hammering out a deal to do both could've cost him Grammy nominations.

Sources familiar with the situation tell us The Weeknd's team was in talks for weeks with Grammy brass, who issued the ultimatum -- us or Super Bowl LV. We're told both sides eventually came to an agreement where Abel could do both, but not without negotiations getting very testy.

Our sources say there's growing suspicion Abel's decision to perform at this year's Super Bowl cost him Grammy noms because the bitter back-and-forth talks pissed off Grammy honchos.

It's unclear why the Grammys would play such hardball in trying to exclusively book him for their airwaves. It might be fear of duplicate performances, as CBS is airing the award show AND the game one week apart in February. Still, our sources tell us Abel and co. feel the dispute might have something to do with his exclusion.

Abel wasn't the only one who fans felt got cheated this year, voicing outrage Pop Smoke, Roddy Rich and Lil Baby -- all Black hip-hop artists -- didn't receive more nominations.

If The Weeknd does decide to stick to the deal and perform at both events -- it would be a huge achievement for any artist.

"I haven't had sex in a while, which is difficult to do since I have a girlfriend and she's hot as f**k."

Here's proof Jake Paul is DEAD SERIOUS about his boxing career ... saying he refuses to hook up with his bombshell model GF, Julia Rose, before his bout against Nate Robinson.

Jake and Nate are on the undercard for the epic Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones fight this Saturday ... and the Youtuber-turned-boxer is taking a page out of Rocky Balboa's book and abstaining from banging before hitting the ring.

Remember, it was Mickey who famously said "women weaken legs" in the original "Rocky" film ... and superstars like Floyd Mayweather have fully committed to the superstition.

So ... how is Jake's lady taking it??

"She's pissed, man," Jake tells TMZ Sports. "She hates me. She just looks at me like, 'I f**king hate you, bro. Why can't we do this right now?!'"

FYI -- the social media superstar and the Shagmag founder have been together since earlier this year ... and Julia has even helped Paul in the gym while prepping for the Robinson fight.

Aside from sex, Jake says he's also been cutting out food as he works toward making his goal weight of 189 ... so it's safe to say, Saturday can't come soon enough for the dude.

Peyton Manning stiff-armed the "Monday Night Football" gig ... but the future Hall of Fame QB found a show he's down to host -- a reboot of the 1960's game show, "College Bowl."

44-year-old Manning has signed on to host the 10-episode season of the once super-popular game show ... a quiz show which pits college students from different universities against each other.

The prize??

Well, SCHOLARSHIP $$$$!!!

The 2x Super Bowl-winning QB is pumped for the new gig (and the loads of prize money they're goin' to give away), saying ... “I’ve always loved intense college competition, so I’m thrilled to be part of the team bringing back ‘College Bowl.”

“Having personally seen the profound impact scholarships can make on deserving students, I can’t wait for the moment when we get to award life-changing scholarships to the winning team,” Manning says.

And, while Peyton is hosting the show -- which originally aired CBS and then NBC until 1970 -- he's also getting some help from his brothers, Eli and Cooper ... who are reportedly serving as Executive Producers.

Tampa Bay Rays outfielder, Randy Arozarena, is the subject of an MLB investigation stemming from an alleged violent incident in Mexico involving the mother of his child and the woman's father.

25-year-old Arozarena was reportedly detained at the woman's home, according to local media outlets.

ESPN's Jeff Passan reports Arozarena "allegedly tried to take his daughter from her mother and assaulted the woman’s father."

Reports out of Mexico indicate Arozarena showed up to the home with gifts for his daughter -- but things went awry when he arrived and he allegedly tried to take the child from the house without permission from the mother.

Video has surfaced allegedly showing a standoff between Arozarena and neighbors -- while Arozarena is holding a child.

Mexican authorities have said they will release more information about the case in the coming days. In the meantime, MLB has officially launched an investigation to gather information.

Scary morning at the Dallas Cowboys' facility ... the team has canceled practice and its media availabilities after a staff member reportedly suffered a serious medical issue Tuesday.

The team has been mum on the circumstances surrounding the incident ... but NFL insider Josina Anderson reports a strength and conditioning staffer "had to receive serious medical attention."

"There is concern for this individual's well-being, per sources," Anderson added.

The Cowboys did say in a statement the medical emergency is NOT coronavirus related.

Canceling practice is a big deal for the Cowboys ... they play for 1st place in the NFC East against the Washington Football Team on Thursday, and every rep on a short week matters.

Dallas is coming off a huge victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday ... and is now looking to go on a win streak that could get it into the playoffs despite a 3-7 start.

It takes a lot to impress Tony Hawk when it comes to skating -- but the legend was BLOWN AWAY by an athlete who learned to ride despite being paralyzed from the waist down.

Hawk met up with Evan Lalanne -- who was badly injured in a fall at Bishop Peak in San Luis Obispo, CA back in 2016.

Lalanne lost the use of his legs in the accident -- but still wanted to figure out a way to participate in action sports.

So, he built himself a motorized skateboard and mastered it -- his IG page is loaded with some insane videos!!

Lalanne was invited to appear on the 'Ellen' show (airs Tuesday) where he met up with Tony Hawk!

Here's where the story gets even better ... Lalanne offered to take Tony for a spin ... so they linked arms and Evan zipped Hawk around the parking lot like a beast!

Ya gotta watch the video -- these guys are FLYING and Tony was clearly impressed!!

"Had the privilege of meeting [and skating with] @evan_lala on the set of @TheEllenShow. In true DIY/skater fashion, he created a custom motorized skateboard to ride in his wheelchair. He towed me until I got speed wobbles then pulled away like a veteran racer. Episode airs today."

Evan isn't doesn't just shred on wheels -- he's also a para-Alpine ski racer!!!

Back in 2019, Evan talked about his condition -- saying, "If I’m gonna be paralyzed, well, then I might as well be really good at it."

No fancy car. No fancy Rolex -- MMA fighter Emiliano Sordi spent his $1 MILLION prize money on something much more important.

HE USED EVERY CENT TO FEED HUNGRY PEOPLE IN HIS HOME COUNTRY!

Amazing, right?!

The 29-year-old earned his $1 mil check by winning the Professional Fighters League light heavyweight season and playoffs in 2019. Dude can fight.

Now, Sordi -- AKA "He-Man" -- is revealing how he spent the dough ... and it'll warm even the coldest of hearts.

The Argentinian fighter says the COVID pandemic has been especially brutal in his home town of Rio Cuarto -- and in an interview with the Hablemos MMA podcast on Monday, he explained why he felt compelled to step up and help.

"Everything here is very rough," Sordi said (via MMA Junkie). "The economy is very bad. The situation is looking very ugly."

"We started giving food to about 300 people and we got to a point where we gave food to 3,000. So economically, I didn’t enjoy any of [the $1 million prize]."

Sordi said he worked with the city to obtain the proper permits to deliver food throughout the area via pickup truck from March through August ... and the operation grew as time went on.

"I didn’t buy anything. I didn’t go on vacation. I mean, I was locked at home. But I used those resources to help people who were going through a rough time."

Emiliano (22-8) says despite his efforts, there are still folks in need ... but he understands he's made an impact with what he's done so far.

COVID is now ruining the greatest dog race in the world -- because the reigning Iditarod champ says travel restrictions are forcing him to bail on the 2021 event.

Thomas Waerner -- the musher who famously won the 2020 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race back in March -- says getting in and out of Alaska with his 16 dogs seems like an insurmountable task with the pandemic still wreaking havoc all over the world.

"I had to make the difficult decision to not start in the Iditarod 2021," Waerner said in a Facebook post.

"It is a lot of work to get to the starting line in a normal year, and in this COVID times it is not possible to get dogs and myself to Alaska."

The race is slated to begin on March 7 -- with mushers and their pooches trekking through 1,000 snow-covered miles to the finish line. There are still 57 mushers expected to compete, according to the AP.

Waerner -- who's from Norway -- famously won the event earlier this year ... but got stuck in Alaska for MONTHS after his victory due to travel restrictions. He finally caught a flight home in June.

As we previously reported, the 2020 event was highly criticized for allowing fans to gather in masses to watch the event without masks or any PPE. This year, organizers are taking the COVID issue much more seriously, bringing on a doctor who specializes in infectious diseases to help with the safety protocol.

As for Waerner, he dominated the 2020 race and adorably thanked his lead dogs -- K2 and Bark -- after crossing the finish line.

Pass the gravy, mashed potatoes, stuffing ... and ketchup?!

Yup, Patrick Mahomes says he loves the tomatoey stuff SO MUCH, he's planning on slathering it all over his Thanksgiving Day meal!!!

The K.C. Chiefs superstar -- well known for his love of ketchup -- confirmed with the guys on KCSP 610 Sports Radio on Monday that he will, in fact, even put ketchup on his turkey.

"Yeah, dude, I mean come on," Mahomes said. "You got to put ketchup on that!"

In fact, Mahomes says if ham is part of his Thanksgiving feast Thursday as well ... that'll get the ketchup treatment too!!!

And, when the guys asked him if he was joking ... Mahomes said flat-out, hell no!

"Come on," the Chiefs star said with a laugh, "you know me better than that!"

Mahomes' infatuation with ketchup clearly knows no bounds ... in the past, he's admitted to putting it on steak, eggs and mac and cheese. The guy even has an endorsement deal with Hunt's to make sure he's always got a fresh bottle handy!

Michael Jordan collectors are gonna LOSE THEIR MINDS -- because some of the most coveted shoes from his career are hitting the auction block for the first time ever.

First, check out the black and red Jordans that MJ rocked during Game 4 of the NBA Finals in 1991 ... the year Jordan won his first NBA championship.

The kicks were signed by MJ and gifted to Sonny Vaccaro -- the former Nike executive who signed His Airness to his first sneaker deal.

And now, Vaccaro is putting them on the auction block through Goldin Auctions, where the shoes are expected to fetch between $500k and $750k!!!

"In my 6-decade career in basketball, I was fortunate to spend 7 years working together with Michael Jordan during my time at Nike, and these Air Jordans represent the moment that he became the most iconic athlete on the planet, as well as the culmination of my career and friendship with Jordan," Vaccaro said in a statement.

"Worn during his very first NBA Championship with the Bulls, and the first for Nike with Jordan, the sneakers were a gift from Jordan to commemorate this amazing achievement."

"The sneakers have remained in my collection for 30 years, and as Jordan’s legacy has only grown as the undisputed greatest of all time, I feel that now is the time to share them and their story with a new generation."

There's more ... Goldin Auctions also MJ's 1985-86 game-used Air Jordan Dunk Sole Sneakers -- 1 of only 5 pairs known to exist!

Goldin says these are the first pair to ever hit the public auction block -- and are expected to hit the $800,000 mark!

"The sneakers are a classic pair of red and white Air Jordans worn during Jordan’s second season, which have the black Nike swoosh logo on each side and the original Air Jordan logo on the ankle," Goldin says.

"Jordan returned from injury during the March 15th, 1986 game against the Milwaukee Bucks after recovering from his broken foot, and he wore variations of the Air Jordan 1s for the remainder of the season."

The shoes also contain a Nike code which show the letters "PS" -- which means they were a "Player Sample," not made for the masses.