TMZ Sports - Page 50

The man whose right foot sent the Bengals to the Super Bowl on Sunday tells TMZ Sports he told his holder just before the game-winning kick over the Chiefs, "Let's just be legendary."

Evan McPherson broke down the conversation with us on Monday ... saying it happened just seconds before he booted the 31-yard field goal to give Cincinnati the 27-24 win in the AFC Championship game.

"Before I took my steps back, I was just like, 'All right, man. Let's just be legendary,'" McPherson said he told holder Kevin Huber. "I said this is where legends are made."

"And so I was like, 'Let's just be legendary. Let's put this ball through and let's go to the Super Bowl.'"

Huber got the hold down clean and McPherson launched the ball through the uprights -- and McPherson tells us the party was on afterward.

The 22-year-old kicker says he and his teammates had a blast on the plane ride back to Cincy ... and then the guys celebrated through the night at local bars.

The NFL, the Cincinnati Bengals and the L.A. Rams are all suing potential Super Bowl ticket and merchandise counterfeiters ahead of the big game ... hoping to stop any such activity in its tracks.

The league and its two teams filed the lawsuit on Monday, TMZ Sports has learned, suing to get a court order authorizing them to seize any counterfeit merch it finds in the leadup to the matchup on Feb. 13.

In the docs, the plaintiffs say counterfeiting is a huge problem at the Super Bowl ... calling it a "multi-billion dollar" business that hurts both the NFL and its consumers.

The league, Rams and Bengals said in the suit they're anticipating "widespread" counterfeiting in Los Angeles the next two weeks ... and want the court order to help protect their brands and their fans from ending up with bootleg tickets and merch.

The league made it clear in the docs, though, that it does not know the names of the counterfeiters at this time ... but they'll amend their complaint to add the names as soon they find any culprits.

Tang Soo Do master Robert Wall, who trained with and acted alongside Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee in some of the greatest martial arts films of all time has died at the age of 82 ... TMZ Sports has learned.

Wall was a 9th degree Tang Soo Do black belt under Norris ... who is credited with bringing the discipline to the West. The men trained together for many years ... and were business partners.

In addition to being a martial arts master, Wall also played important roles on the silver screen.

Robert appeared in 1972s "Way of the Dragon" and 1973s "Enter the Dragon" -- both starring Lee, the most well-renowned martial artist to ever live.

Wall and Lee had a memorable and very real (albeit one-sided) fight in "Enter the Dragon."

In fact, years after they filmed the fight scene, Bob revealed Lee actually broke his ribs.

"Bob, I wanna hit you, and I wanna hit you hard," Wall revealed Lee told him prior to filming.

The reason ... Bruce -- who'd known Wall for 8 years before filming the movie -- wanted the fight to look as authentic as possible, so the two masters went full-speed.

Wall's family sent us the following statement on Robert's passing.

"Bob was the greatest husband and father. Family was Everything to him. He lived a remarkable life & There is a hole in our hearts that will never be filled. His spirit & legacy will live on forever within us. He was our rock."

Rest in peace.

It's been an incredible 24 hours for Joe Burrow -- after defeating the Chiefs to advance to the Super Bowl, the Bengals star QB says his childhood idol, Kid Cudi, hit him up to congratulate him on the victory.

"One of my idols growing up, Kid Cudi, reached out to me yesterday," Burrow told reporters after the huge win.

"You’ve got LeBron [James] tweeting at me or whatever you said it was ... That part is surreal. The football part, not so much. That stuff is crazy."

Cudi -- who was celebrating his 38th birthday on Sunday -- tweeted at Burrow saying, "Man this has to be the illest s*** ✌🏽❤️😭 beautiful f***in' game today brother!!"

BTW -- Joe says he listens to "New York City Rage Fest" -- one of Cudi's Songs -- to get himself ready mentally every game day. But, Burrow likes too many of Cudi's songs to pick a favorite.

Of course, Cudi is a native of Ohio (shoutout Shaker Heights) ... so it's not hard to see why he's so fond of the former LSU standout and #1 overall draft pick in 2020.

Speaking of the NFL draft ... the seeds for the bromance between Burrow and Cudi were planted when the Bengals selected Joe with their first-round pick.

"Congratulations on being the number 1 draft pick," Cudi said at the time. "That's wild. That's crazy. You on your way. You just gettin started brother."

Joe Cool even said Lakers star LeBron James tweeted about him, calling him a "generational talent" and saying we all knew and saw that he'd be special.

High praises coming from one of the greatest players in NBA history ... and a figure familiar with the sports landscape in Ohio. After all, Joe did just beat Patrick Mahomes when he erased an 18-pt deficit on the road.

A glove that Antonio Brown threw into the stands during his shirtless tirade at the Bucs vs. Jets game earlier this month can now be all yours ... 'cause it's just hit the auction block.

The item is up for sale on Lelands ... and so far, there's already been 12 bids, with the highest currently at $375.

It's unclear how much it's ultimately expected to fetch ... but whatever it gets could end up being a bargain, considering how iconic Brown's meltdown was.

You'll recall, AB was so furious after he claimed Bruce Arians tried to get him to play on a busted-up ankle that he ripped off his pads and his shirt and then jaunted across the field.

At one point during the temper tantrum, AB tossed his gloves into the stands ... and a fan who caught one is now clearly trying to make a buck off it.

The glove is pretty cool, it was used during the game ... and you can see on the wrist, there's actually a Raiders logo that was blacked out. Clearly, Brown had kept the glove in his possession ever since his short stint in Oakland.

NBA legend Allen Iverson got emotional at a signing event over the weekend ... after a young fan handed him a poster that featured an image of him with the late Kobe Bryant.

The cool moment was all captured on camera while Iverson was out in Texas.

You can see in video, after the kid handed him the picture -- which showed the two basketball players together on the court -- he paused to appreciate the image.

"Damn, whose is this?!" Iverson said of the photo. "This yours?!"

"Man, you going to give me one? You got another one for me? Man, I need one of these!"

Iverson eventually autographed the piece ... and then he gave some advice to the kid about always listening to his parents.

Allen's great relationship with Kobe, meanwhile, has been well documented -- the two were both a part of the 1996 draft class -- and competed against each other for decades.

Bryant -- who spent his entire career with the Lakers -- battled AI's 76ers in the 2001 NBA Finals, and although The Answer was able to steal a game from Shaq/Kobe ... Philly ultimately lost the series, 4-1.

Cristiano Ronaldo's girlfriend, Georgina Rodriguez, is having some fun in the sun before welcoming twins ... showing off her growing baby bump during a beach vacation in Dubai!!

CR7 and his longtime partner revealed back in October they were expecting 2 new additions to the family ... and as they await the new arrivals, the lovely couple decided to take a trip to paradise.

Georgina posted pics from the beach on Monday ... showing off her belly in a number of steamy snaps while rocking a 2-piece bikini.

As we previously reported, Ronaldo is preparing for babies #5 and #6 ... which is one short of his goal of 7 baby Ronaldos.

This will be Cristiano and Georgina's second and third child together ... as Ronaldo's 3 other children came via surrogate mother.

There's a lot to celebrate recently -- Georgina just had her 28th birthday on the 27th ... and Ronaldo had a few days off before taking the pitch for Manchester United.

49ers' DB Jaquiski Tartt is taking the Rams loss hard, saying he let his team down when he dropped a crucial interception during the NFC Championship game, and deserves all the criticism.

The Niners were up 3 with less than 10 minutes to go in the game ... when Rams QB Matt Stafford threw a pass directly to Tartt, hitting him square in the hands. Unfortunately for San Fran, Jaquiski dropped the should-be pick.

The Rams went on to kick a field goal, tying the game. Next possession, they took the lead for good, and punched a ticket to the Super Bowl.

Needless to say, the pick could've changed the outcome of the game.

And, Tartt knows it, and isn't making any excuses.

"No excuses!! I deserve all the criticism my way!" the 29-year-old said on social media.

"Opportunity I dream of I came up short!!! Let my brothers down!! It Still won't define me as a person/player. Only will get stronger and better."

Reporters asked Tartt about his post-game tweet, and he got emotional saying it should have been a game-changing play.

"I know I can make that play and when the play came up, I ain't make it," Tartt said.

"It hit my hands, I thought I had it and then I just ... I don't know how I dropped it. I didn't drop a ball in practice all week."

Tartt added, "I know that was a big play of the game, a big opportunity for me and for the team and as a player, I just feel like I let my brothers down."

Even though Tartt's placing the blame squarely on his shoulders, his teammates have his back.

49ers safety Jimmy Ward came to JT's defense over the dropped INT, saying no one play was responsible for the team's loss.

"There's a lot of plays out there, and we could have did better including myself," Ward said during a post-game interview.

Tough Sunday night for Kyle Juszczyk and his family -- after losing the NFC Championship game to the Rams, the Niners fullback's wife was trolled at a McDonald's.

Kristin Juszczyk had been trying to get some "comfort food" with some friends following the tough defeat ... when she walked up to the fast-food joint and immediately began getting heckled.

Kristin explained they had to order on foot because their bus wouldn't fit in the drive-thru ... and then she showed video of an employee ribbin' them over her hubby's loss.

Check out the footage, after one of Kristin's friends (wearing a No. 44 Juszczyk jersey) said, "We just want some nuggets, man," the guy started to throw jabs about Jimmy Garoppolo.

"It's OK," the worker said through the intercom. "Jimmy just wanted a ring. He's not going to get it."

"Yeah. He wanted a ring, and he's just not going to get it."

To their credit, Kristin and co. were good sports about it all ... laughing it off and even dishing some smack talk back.

Danish soccer star Christian Eriksen is officially back -- the midfielder has announced his return to the pitch just 7 months after suffering cardiac arrest during Euro 2020.

"Happy to announce that I've signed with Brentford Football Club," Eriksen said Monday via IG.

"I can't wait to get started and hopefully I'll see you all very soon."

Last June, the midfielder lost consciousness and fell to the ground during the first round of Denmark's UEFA European Championship match.

Medics gave him CPR on the field ... and he was carried off on a stretcher and transferred to a local hospital.

Danish doctors later confirmed Eriksen suffered cardiac arrest ... and the 29-year-old would need an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (a type of pacemaker) to prevent further episodes.

Because of his heart device and Italy's medical laws, Eriksen was unable to play ... and he agreed with Inter Milan to terminate his contract in Dec. 2021.

Fast forward 7 months ... and Eriksen has signed a 6-month deal with Brentford.

"We have taken an unbelievable opportunity to bring a world-class player to Brentford," head coach Thomas Frank said.

"He hasn’t trained with a team for 7 months, but has done a lot of work on his own. He is fit but we will need to get him match fit and I am looking forward to seeing him work with the players and staff to get back towards his highest level."

Odell Beckham Jr. celebrated the Rams' win on Sunday in style ... hitting up an L.A. hotspot just hours after he and his team punched their ticket to Super Bowl LVI.

The star receiver arrived at Delilah in West Hollywood shortly after beating the San Francisco 49ers at SoFi Stadium ... and he came sportin' his fresh NFC Championship hat.

Odell also rocked a big chain for the occasion ... and then he rubbed elbows with some celebs at the venue.

Travis Scott was there, and so was Tyga, who had actually celebrated with OBJ on the field following the big win earlier in the day.

Even Antonio Brown showed up to the hotspot -- though it's unclear if the NFL stars ever crossed paths while inside.

Of course, Odell had every reason to be out late livin' it up -- after being jettisoned by the Cleveland Browns earlier this season, he rebounded big time to have a huge final few games with the Rams.

In fact, during their win on Sunday, OBJ had 9 catches for 113 yards!!!

Joe Rogan vowed to do better in the wake of criticism his podcast is spreading COVID misinformation ... and he says he knows how to make things better and more responsible.

Rogan broke his silence Sunday ... this after Neil Young and others yanked their music off Spotify in protest.

Rogan said he's down with Spotify's disclaimer when guests go against prevailing science ... a disclaimer urging folks to talk to their physician. The disclaimer will also note the views discussed are contrary to those of experts.

But, Rogan went further, acknowledging he should have done more ... like immediately after saying goodbye to a guest who goes against the grain, he'll bring on someone with mainstream views. He says he will do that from now on.

Rogan was contrite, telling Spotify he was sorry the platform has taken heat over his podcast. Joe also said he's a huge Neil Young fan and has no hard feelings toward him.

That said, Rogan began by saying the term "misinformation" is relative ... he says some of what was considered irresponsible to say early on in the pandemic has become a conventional point of view.

The Rams' huge win didn't go off seamlessly on Sunday ... 'cause the Jumbotron operator at their stadium mistook Big Sean and Jhene Aiko for Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr. -- and the scene was hilarious.

Just before L.A. beat the San Francisco 49ers to advance to the Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium ... someone really screwed up as the camera was panning around to celebs in the crowd.

When it got to Big Sean and Aiko ... the graphics below them read "Sarah Michelle Gellar" and "Freddie Prinze Jr."

Fans noticed the gaffe quickly -- pointing out the blunder all over social media ... and even Michelle Gellar had to poke fun at it all on her Instagram page.

"@bigsean do you get mistaken for me as often as I get mistaken for you?" she said.

"somebody about to get fired," she added.

Of course, Big Sean and Aiko didn't seem bothered by it ... they were spotted livin' it up in their on-field suite throughout the game, and the two appeared to even celebrate the Rams' win afterward.

As for Prinze Jr., he didn't even attend the game -- and he's yet to respond to it all, but we're sure something witty is coming shortly.

Andy Cosferent – the assistant coach and star of Netflix's "Cheer" – noticeably disappeared in the middle of the second season ... causing viewers to wonder if the fan-favorite was axed from the show. Andy tells us ... that simply wasn't the case.

Andy says there were a few reasons why he vanished in the middle of the season ... one being that his main job kicked back up when things started opening after the pandemic began subsiding.

Andy explains he isn't just an assistant coach for the Corsicana, TX team ... he also works for a company that helps coordinate cheer camps, and when things opened back up, there was a huge demand for him to get back to work.

The other reason is he was secretly spearheading "Cheer Live" -- which will be a live cheer tour across the country involving cheerleaders from both Navarro and Trinity Community College. Andy says he's working with Monica Aldama behind the scenes to organize the tour, so any rumors about bad blood between the duo are just nonsense.

Eddie George is backing Shaq ... telling TMZ Sports he likes The Big Diesel's idea of replacing Mike McCarthy with Deion Sanders in Dallas.

The former Cowboys running back spoke with us in L.A. about his old team's head coaching situation ... and he agrees with Shaq's hot take this week, saying he'd be into hiring Deion if he were Jerry Jones.

"I mean if I'm the owner and I look at it, I would say, 'Why not?'" George said. "I'd look at it seriously. Why wouldn't you?"

McCarthy is still under contract in Dallas, and Jones said Friday he will be back coaching the team next season.

But, as George noted in the clip, Mike hasn't found much success in his two seasons in Dallas ... failing to win a playoff game despite having a loaded roster in 2021.

"I mean," George said, "what else hasn't worked so far."

George -- who said Deion has given him advice when it comes to his own head coaching role at Tennessee State -- tells us he thinks the current Jackson State headman would be a "good fit" in the role.

"Prime has done an amazing job so far at Jackson State," George said. "He's a culture changer. He knows what he wants, he's been very successful in all levels. He's a winner."

Deion might have to get in line if he wants the gig, though ... there have been reports that the recently retired Sean Payton could replace McCarthy next season.

Patrick Mahomes’ fiancée, Brittany Matthews, could have a tough decision to make at the AFC Championship -- some Chiefs fans want her to repeat the exact celebration she caught so much flak for last week.

Brittany is at today's game in Kansas City, and while some people try to avoid the splash zone ... some KC fans are all about that life!! In the middle of the fired-up crowd, you can see signs like, “Let’s spray some more champagne!” and “Ready for the champagne shower!”

Some are even adding the #TeamBritt ... making it clear they have NO issue whatsoever with what she did after the Chiefs' OT victory.

Remember, after the clip of Brittany spraying champagne on fans below her luxury box went viral, she got a lot of online backlash. She complained, "Wish I could do what I want without getting attacked every week.”

A few days later, Brittany announced she would be making “Team Brittany” shirts for her fans -- she said the intent was to stand up to what she considers online bullying, and a portion of proceeds are going to an anti-bullying charity.