Less than 24 hours after KPRC 2 in Houston reported that two more women were set to file civil suits against Deshaun Watson alleging that he engaged in sexual misconduct during massage therapy sessions, the quarterback practiced for the Cleveland Browns Tuesday during the start of mandatory mini-camp.
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After practicing, Watson met with the media. It was an uncomfortable press conference to watch, one where it felt inappropriate to ask the starting quarterback about anything other than what we continue to learn about how Watson is accused of behaving during massage therapy sessions.
The events of the last few weeks have left you with one feeling: how did the NFL let things get this far?
The league could have stepped in as early as March of 2021 -- when Tony Buzbee's law firm filed the first of what's turned into 26 civil lawsuits for the 26-year-old quarterback alleging sexual misconduct. They didn't.
The league could have stepped in back in November of 2021 when trade talks around Watson heated up in advance of the NFL trade deadline. Watson and his team attempted to reach settlements with what were at the time 22 accusers so that a trade to the Miami Dolphins could be facilitated with the Houston Texans. They didn't. (Ultimately, only 18 of 22 women were willing to settle at that time, and Watson and lawyer Rusty Hardin elected not to settle with any of the women if they couldn't reach agreements with all. Thus, no trade to the Dolphins took place.)
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The league could have stepped in when Watson trade talks resurfaced after the 2022 season, with the Cleveland Browns ultimately "winning" the sweepstakes for the embattled quarterback, edging out the New Orleans Saints, Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers. They didn't, and thus, the Browns traded three first-round picks, a third-round pick and two fourth-round picks for Watson and a sixth-round pick.
On the way in the door, Watson received a five-year/$230 million deal from the Browns, a fully-guaranteed deal that amounted to the largest pact in NFL history. While two separate grand juries had elected not to move forward with criminal proceedings against Watson, he was still facing 22 civil lawsuits at that time. The NFL allowed this to get to the point where not only could Watson be traded and sign such a lucrative contract, but sign a deal with the Browns that was structured in a way that he would only have a $1.035 million base salary in 2022, a relative drop in the bucket if he were to be suspended without pay for part or all of his first year in Cleveland.
Since a dystopian introductory press conference -- one where Watson was flanked by general manager Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski, but notably not owner Jimmy Haslam -- in late March, four more women have joined the list in suing Watson. Mind you, in this introductory press conference, Watson said that he had "never disrespected a woman."
Given the charges that Watson was facing, it felt inappropriate to even have a press conference talking about him as the face of a franchise. But once he was allowed to be traded and signed to a historic contract, what were the Browns going to do, pretend like it didn't happen?
In a damning story for The New York Times last week, Jenny Vrentas spoke with multiple accusers of Watson, and uncovered that the quarterback had "booked appointments with at least 66 different women during just the 17 months from fall 2019 through spring 2021." A week after the horrifying report detailed predatory actions that Watson allegedly engaged in during massage therapy sessions, he was on the field practicing for the Browns like none of this had come to light.
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Make no mistake, Watson is innocent until proven guilty from a legal sense. He and every American are guaranteed that treatment via the fifth amendment.
They are not, however, guaranteed the privilege of playing in the NFL while these charges loom over them, their team and the league as a whole.
Commissioner Roger Goodell curiously appeared to remove the idea of placing Watson on the commissioner's exempt list back in March, when we knew that two grand juries would not proceed with criminal charges against Watson. However, 22 civil lawsuits still hung over Watson, and four more have since emerged.
The NFL may have wanted to act with finality by either deciding to suspend Watson or not, but with new information coming out multiple times a week, it's impossible to do that right now. That's what the commissioner's exempt list exists for; it would allow Watson to still be paid his full salary but not play until the league decided that his legal troubles were adequately resolved. At that point, Goodell and the NFL would be in better position to decide if Watson was deserving of a suspension and/or some other type of punishment.
The NFL still has time to make the decision to place Watson on the commissioner's exempt list before the season starts, with almost no chance to the civil cases being resolved before then, barring what feels like an unlikely settlement. It would be better late than never, but there's no doubt, the league has been ridiculously late in treating this matter with the seriousness that it deserves.
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