TMZ Sports - Page 50

NFL star Alex Smith -- who beat the odds and returned to the field after a catastrophic leg injury in 2018 -- is retiring from football, the QB announced Monday.

36-year-old Smith gave an emotional farewell to the sport just minutes ago ... saying he's ready for a new challenge after making his improbable comeback.

"Two years ago I was stuck in a wheelchair, staring down at my mangled leg, wondering if I'd ever be able to go on a walk with my wife again, or play games with my kids in the yard," the 2020 Comeback Player of the Year said.

Smith credits getting a football back in his hand for his miraculous recovery ... adding, "I don't know what it was but all of a sudden I felt stronger, more driven and what once seemed impossible began to come into focus."

"I want to say thank you for believing in me and thank you for helping me believe in myself and the impossible," he added. "Because even though I have plenty of snaps left in me, after 16 years of giving this game everything I’ve got, I can’t wait to see what else is possible."

Smith says he will now spend time with his wife and kids ... and enjoy making up the time he's missed with them over the past 16 years.

Smith -- a superstar QB out of the University of Utah -- was the #1 overall pick to the San Francisco 49ers in 2005, where he played for 8 seasons.

He was traded to the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013 ... earning Pro Bowl honors 3 times in 5 seasons, and posting the league's best passer rating in 2017.

Smith joined the Washington Football Team in 2018 and was having a solid season before suffering a gruesome leg injury against the Houston Texans in Week 10.

After battling a flesh-eating bacteria and 17 operations, Smith worked nonstop to make his return to the field in 2020, appearing in 8 games for Washington.

"I was a skinny no-name recruit who wasn't supposed to play in college, let alone go to New York as a Heisman finalist or be the first one to have his name called on draft night," Smith added.

Zamar Kirven -- a former starting LB for the Univ. of Houston football team -- has been accused of murdering his ex-H.S. teammates in a violent shooting Sunday.

The McLennan County Sheriff's Office said Kirven opened fire on 2 men, who may have been asleep at the time, at around 2 A.M. in Mart, Texas.

Officials did NOT release a motive for the alleged attack ... but they did say Kirven grew up with the men and even played high school football with them.

"He gunned those people down in cold blood," Sheriff Parnell McNamara told TMZ Sports of the alleged incident. "There was not a fight."

21-year-old Kirven was arrested and booked on a capital murder charge. Jail records show he's still in custody.

Kirven -- a 6'3", 205-pound athlete -- was a star at Mart H.S. and eventually earned a full-ride scholarship to play for the Cougars after his senior season in 2018.

Kirven played in 9 games in his true freshman season ... and went on to start 5 games in his sophomore season in 2019.

Ex-NBA star Nate Robinson raked in more than $2 MILLION for that horrific boxing performance against Jake Paul back in 2020 ... and there's a chance they could run it back!!

That's all according to ESPN's Stephen A. Smith who says he spoke with a source "close to Nate" about what's going on behind the scenes ... and he dropped a ton of very interesting information.

Smith had mentioned Robinson's ill-fated Nov. 2020 match with Paul on Monday's "First Take" ... and when they came from commercial break, the extremely well-connected Stephen A. read a text message he received from a trusted Nate Robinson source. Here's what it said:

"Nate walked out the arena [on Nov. 28 and] realized he was not trained well. [He] apologized for not listening and collected a little over $2 million for that fiasco. He's fine."

"They are trying to get him to fight in a rematch, if you can believe that. Floyd 'Money' Mayweather wants to train him, if he agrees. Crazy but true."

The source said he advised Nate "not to do it" -- "but if he does, it needs to be for more money and he needs to train with a pro for a very long time."

Stephen A. and his First Take co-host Max Kellerman both strongly urged Nate to NOT take a rematch ... considering the punishment he took in the first fight.

We strongly agree.

A tiger never changes its stripes -- that is, unless you're the Cincinnati Bengals, which just debuted some brand new uniforms ... and they look GOOD!!

It's no secret -- the Bengals have had some of the worst jerseys in the NFL for nearly 2 decades ... with the majority of fans begging for a makeover.

Who Dey Nation's prayers were finally answered on Monday ... with Joe Burrow, Chad Ochocinco and more showing off the beautiful new threads in all their glory.

There are some significant changes to the unis -- most notably, the shoulder stripes are much simpler and easier on the eyes ... and the random white stripe on the side of the black jerseys are gone (a huge victory in itself).

The jerseys also have a different number font, which is meant to resemble the ridges of Paul Brown Stadium and claw marks of a tiger.

Unfortunately, there's still a tiger print down the side of the pants -- which comes in 3 different configurations -- but hey, we won't complain too much.

The big reveal came with a hype video to "Run It" by Ohio native Cal Scruby ... which was a nice touch.

One of Colton Underwood's first orders of business as a new openly gay man was to hit the town and dip his toe into the scene -- but it looks like he got distracted along the way.

The former 'Bachelor' -- who just came out publicly last week -- went to a gay bar in Denver Sunday ... a place called Charlie's, which seems like a pretty happening place complete with a dance floor, private booths and bumpin' music.

All that was in full flex while Colton was there ... but based on these pics and video we got of him there, dude was more interested in his phone, at least for part of the night.

Anyway, eyewitnesses tell us CU was at Charlie's with his friend, and mentor of sorts, Gus Kenworthy. The Olympic skier's kinda showing Colton the ropes in the community ... and will be featured on Colton's Netflix docuseries.

Welcome to the Dozens ... starring Barack Obama?!?

He's got jokes! Fat jokes. Gambling jokes. Shaq jokes!! Plus, actual information about the COVID vaccine (no joke!)!!

Obama sat down virtually with Charles Barkley and Shaquille O'Neal as part of ATTN:'s "Roll Up Your Sleeves" special on NBC ... where the goal was to educate the public about some of the misconceptions about the vaccine.

But, before he got down to business ... Obama had a little fun at Shaq and Barkley's expense!

Obama razzed Chuck for his famous gambling habit and joked with Shaq about how the Big Man endorses every business on the planet!

And then came the fat joke ...

Obama congratulated Barkley on his daughter's recent wedding -- and brought up how Charles mentioned how he wanted to slim down for the event.

"You also felt like you need to get in shape because The Hora (the traditional Jewish dance) ... when you're lifting the chair, nobody could do that at your current weight!"

Don't freak out, it was all in good fun -- and Barkley laughed it off.

"I survived the Hora! No one got hurt -- it was the best day of my life!"

As for the vaccine ... here's the gist of what Obama had to say.

-- "A lot of the underlying conditions, things like diabetes, folks who have preexisting conditions ... there is more of that in communities of color than there is generally, which means we're more vulnerable."

-- "A lot of young people think ... 'Even if I get COVID, it's like a bad cold.' But part of what we're seeing now is there is a different strain of the virus that's come over. That's not the dominant variant and it's actually hitting young people harder than the original version."

-- "We don't know the kinds of long terms effects that were having. There's some folks who get it and 6 months later and they're still not feeling quite right."

Obama also brought up how measles used to "kill people all the time" before vaccines.

He also mentioned the Tuskegee experiments and how it has become a reference point for Black people who don't trust the government when it comes to health care.

"The irony is when you know about the Tuskegee experiment, what's going on there is the government withheld treatment that was available for Black men for Syphilis. They didn't give them medicine they needed."

"So, here's a situation where if the medicine is available, we need to take it."

The G.O.A.T.’s knee is continuing to mend ... Tom Brady says his injured leg is feeling “pretty good” a couple months after surgery, though he added he’s not quite close to 100% yet.

The 7-time Super Bowl champ broke it down for reporters at Bruce Arians’ charity event Sunday, explaining rehab on his injured knee is going well, but he likely wouldn’t be able to practice for Tampa if official workouts began this week.

"I feel pretty good, and I push myself pretty hard," The 43-year-old said. "I feel pretty good. I don't know if I could go this week, but we'll see how things play out.”

It’s unclear when Brady initially injured his knee, but multiple reports have indicated he dealt with the ailment through the Bucs’ run to the Super Bowl in 2020.

Brady had surgery to repair the issue just days after the title game victory over the Chiefs ... and, despite clearly not being full-go yet, he seemed confident Sunday it'd be healthy by the start of the 2021 season.

"It's a long time between now and the beginning of the season,” Brady said, "and just be smart about all these different things that we have to do and fulfill; but we all take a lot of pride in being ready to go, and I'm sure we will be."

Metta World Peace is genuinely impressed with Jake Paul's boxing career -- telling TMZ Sports the guy is "legit" and loves the fact he's chasing his dream.

The former NBA star -- who's a big boxing fan -- loved watching Paul knock out Ben Askren over the weekend ... and explained why it's the latest in an "incredible" journey for the 24-year-old YouTube star.

"I like Jake Paul, because I think anybody who has a dream should go after that dream," Metta told us outside of Toast in L.A.

"I think what's incredible about it is he's doing it! That's what's incredible about it, action!"

Metta says he had dreams of becoming a boxer when he was younger -- but never followed up.

So, the fact Jake is putting in the work and seeing results is very impressive to him.

And get this ... Metta tells TMZ Sports he's been getting calls from networks looking to book him in a major celebrity boxing event.

But, don't hold your breath -- Metta says he ain't interested.

"I don't feel like doing it ... It's just not something I'm into doing."

"Ain't no dollar amount," Metta added ... "I just don't want to do it."

The L.A. Lakers will NOT visit Joe Biden at the White House next week to celebrate their 2019-20 NBA championship -- but it ain't a protest.

Unlike every NBA team during the Trump administration, the Lakers are NOT choosing to skip the Biden visit for political reasons -- it's all about COVID protocols and scheduling conflicts, according to multiple outlets.

The Lakers will be in D.C. to take on the Washington Wizards on April 28th -- and championship teams have historically scheduled the celebratory White House during road trips in the area.

But, it won't happen this time.

However, the Lakers -- including superstar LeBron James -- are open to a future meeting with President Biden ... possibly later or even after the season.

Hey, they're all busy people!

Plus, the NBA has strongly discouraged teams from participating in large public gatherings -- which could be one of the reasons they're pressing pause on the White House visit for now.

During President Trump's term -- zero NBA or WNBA championship teams visited the White House.

The Warriors, Raptors and Lakers were all outspokenly against the visit -- and Trump, in turn, either withdrew his invitation or never extended one.

Same with the WNBA teams and nearly every major college basketball champion with one exception ... the Baylor women's team visited after their 2019 title win.

"He's got 3 Super Bowl rings. He has 36 touchdowns. He's 5-foot-9. He's Jewish!"

Jeremy Piven says all of that -- and more -- are the reasons he's certain Julian Edelman is a Hall of Famer ... telling TMZ Sports the Patriots legend should be in Canton on the 1st ballot!

"He runs a 4.3 [40-yard dash], he played quarterback in high school," Piven told us out in L.A. this week. "I mean, I look in the mirror and I see Julian Edelman. I don't see me, and then I wake up and I see me and then it's pathetic."

"I celebrate him with the power of Christ. He's amazing! Put him in the Hall of Fame!"

The debate is now raging in the football world after Edelman officially retired from the game last Monday ... with people in both corners of the argument adamant they're right.

On one hand, you have guys like Rob Gronkowski, who still ain't so sure Edelman's gonna get the nod ... despite playing with the guy forever in New England.

On the other hand, you have dudes like Piven who are all in.

As for if Edelman truly deserves the bronze bust ... his regular season stats are solid -- 620 catches for 6,822 receiving yards and 36 TDs -- but not spectacular.

His postseason resume, though, certainly is. Julian's got 3 title rings, a Super Bowl MVP award and he's second all-time to Jerry Rice in total playoff receptions.

"He was one of Tom Brady's favorite targets," Piven added. "That's not a participation trophy. He ran great routes, he hustled. You look at his highlights and look at his stats."

"Even Belichick's coming out and saying the variable with Julian Edelman is he shows up at the big moments."

Lil Yachty doesn't think boycotts in Georgia will help change new, oppressive voting laws in his home state ... but he's got advice for people worried about getting to the polls.

We got the Atlanta rapper leaving dinner at Delilah in WeHo and asked about the impact of Major League Baseball, Hollywood productions and other big businesses pulling out of Georgia in protest over new laws that make it harder to vote ... mostly for people of color.

Lil Yachty says the boycotts won't last forever, and he thinks they won't actually do anything to sway lawmakers to jettison the law they just enacted ... because the Peach State is just too stubborn.

Jake Paul just made good on his promise ... DESTROYING BEN ASKREN in a ferocious 1st-round knockout!!!!

THE FIGHT LASTED LESS THAN 2 MINUTES!!!

Askren -- a decorated MMA fighter -- threw some shots that landed in the opening moments of the fight. But things changed quickly.

24-year-old Paul made it clear he was headhunting -- throwing big shots and connecting with a DESTRUCTIVE right hand that sent the UFC fighter crashing to the floor with 1:18 left in the opening round.

Snoop was so pumped -- he was shouting, "FINISH HIM! FINISH HIM!"

36-year-old Askren got up and wanted to continue -- but the ref waved it off, saying Askren was stumbling ... and ultimately ruling Ben was just too discombobulated to continue.

Jake WAS EMOTIONAL after the win -- crying in the ring and falling to his knees in disbelief, At one point, he got back up and started doing push ups to show he could keep going.

Snoop Dogg -- who was doing the announcing -- spoke with Jake after the fight saying ... "You f**king did that. You're a bad motherf**ker."

"I told y'all I would do it in the 1st round. I told you I'm a real fighter," Paul replied.

Snoop was in a VERY good mood following the knockout -- saying he won a $2 MILLION bet he claims to have made on the fight with UFC president Dana White.

"Dana, where my money at?" Snoop said during the broadcast.

Dana White has previously denied ever taking the action with Snoop.

As for Paul, he's now 3-0 as a pro fighter -- including a similar knockout over NBA star Nate Robinson.

The million dollar question for Jake ... WHO'S NEXT?!

The whole Triller Fight Club event was pretty damn entertaining -- with performances from Justin Bieber, the Black Keys, Snoop, Too Short, Doja Cat, Saweetie, Diplo and more.

Kayla Harrison is an undefeated MMA fighter with 2 Olympic gold medals, but the PFL star admits cage fighting is SCARY, and says that's why she isn't underestimating her next opponent ... despite being a huge favorite.

TMZ Sports- talked to the 30-year-old, 8-0 fighter weeks before she attempts to win the Professional Fighters League million-dollar tournament for the 3rd straight time!!

Harrison is a massive favorite heading into her May 6 fight with 26-year-old Mariana Morais ... but don't make the mistake of asking Kayla (like we did) if it's hard to get motivated to fight the 16-10 journeyman when everyone expects her to easily win.

"Have you ever been in a cage with someone? It's the most terrifying thing in the world. It's like this person is trying to take your head off so there's no, I don't have to pump myself. There's no taking her lightly. Everyone is tough until you beat them," Harrison tells us.

Since joining the sport, Kayla has run through everyone she's faced ... causing some critics to say she isn't facing premier competition -- a claim Harrison takes umbrage with.

"That's fine, say that I'm fighting cans, say that I'm fighting bums. That's just 'cause I'm that good. That's what I want. That's fine, I want people to say that."

We also spoke to Kayla about a future super fight with Amanda Nunes (the opposite of a can) ... a match MMA fans badly want.

Nunes recently ran through top-contender Megan Anderson ... and many experts believe Harrison is the only woman who can give Lioness a run for her money.

Speaking of money ... Kayla says it's gonna take a whole lotta cash -- and some other things -- before that fight ever happens.

But ... she definitely didn't say no!!

New team, new bling!! At least, that's the type of wave Andre Drummond is on ... with L.A.'s newest star copping a brand new grill right after joining the Lakers!!!

TMZ Sports has learned ... the 6'10" big man decided he wanted his smile to be spotted from miles away ... so he hit up his guy, AP the Jeweler from Atlanta, to help him out with a new grill.

Since Drummond was still a Cavalier at the time, AP personally flew out to Cleveland back in February to get his molding and start the process.

Of course, Drummond's tenure in The Land ended shortly after placing his order ... but the timing couldn't have been more perfect -- he now had a new accessory for his big arrival in L.A.!!

AP -- who also made LaMelo Ball's grill -- tells us the 8-top, 8-bottom white gold piece is filled with 10 carats of VVS diamonds in a honeycomb set.

No word on how much Drummond paid for his teeth, but we're told a grill like this would cost anyone a solid $20,000.

Joe Buck is set to try and fill Alex Trebek's shoes on "Jeopardy!" -- at least temporarily, and perhaps forever(?) ... this according to some new reports.

Different outlets are reporting that Buck -- perhaps America's most famous sports broadcaster -- will serve as a guest host on the legacy game show soon ... with his episodes apparently slated to air later this summer.

Unclear when filming begins, or how long his stint will be -- but it probably wouldn't run longer than 2 weeks, which is about how long all the other guest hosts have stepped in. Word is his time on "Jeopardy!" won't get in the way of his other broadcast duties for FOX.

One report claims Buck's "Jeopardy!" attempt is actually being considered for a longer-term role ... maybe even as permanent host of the series. IF true, that'd be a huge blow to people who have been begging for LeVar Burton to get a shot ... which has yet to happen.

Of course, the actor was the longtime host of "Reading Rainbow" once upon a time ... and many think he'd be a natural fit. LeVar does too, apparently, as he's been very vocal recently about his desire to stand behind the podium ... even posting a viral petition demanding it.

LeVar has been even more explicit than that, though .. there's a clip of him doing an interview and getting into the nitty-gritty of the "Jeopardy!" gig, which he says he's had his eye on for a long time now ... harkening back to before Trebek passed and was in contract negotiations. At the time, LeVar notes he was quite interested ... and appears to remain so to this day.

The question, of course, is whether Sony Pictures Television -- which produces "Jeopardy!" -- is listening, and whether they'll actually cave in to the overwhelming sentiment that LB is perfect for the job.

You gotta imagine if they're going through the Rolodex of well-spoken, brainy and calm-your-nerves on-camera personalities ... then LeVar oughta be at least considered for a go at it. Nothing against Joe or anything, but the guy's got his hands full in the sports world.

Peloton's state-of-the-art treadmill is dangerous for kids and pets, and folks should refrain from using it immediately -- so says a U.S. regulator, who's got video evidence of the perils.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission -- formed in the '70s to help American consumers know which products can cause harm -- has come out strongly against Peloton and its Tread+ machine ... telling people with vulnerable loved ones to stop using it.

The agency says in light of a recent child death and "dozens" of reported instances of small children and pets getting sucked under the back roller of the conveyer belt -- and getting seriously injured in the process -- they're advising the Tread+ get temporarily unplugged.

The CPSC says it's aware of at least 39 injuries and one death related to the Tread+, and even says leaving the machine turned off can still pose a risk if the turn-on key is still accessible. They attached a graphic video that shows a toddler being pinned under the roller as it's in use by his older sister, who walks away ... with the kid left unattended.

We must warn you ... this is difficult to watch, but fortunately, the child appears to get himself out of the Peloton's clutches and gets up afterward. CPSC says this is just one example of the danger.

As for Peloton, they're playing down the CPSC's report ... calling it "inaccurate and misleading." They add, "The Tread+ is safe for Members to use in their homes and comes with safety instructions and warnings to ensure its safe use. Like all motorized exercise equipment, the Tread+ can pose hazards if the warnings and safety instructions are not followed. The Tread+ is not for children under 16. Peloton warns Members not to let children use the Tread+ and to keep children, pets, and objects away from the Tread+ at all times."