Deshaun Watson's age-26 campaign has turned into a lost season, but the embattled quarterback's agent says that the three-time Pro Bowler remains encouraged about how his legal situation will play out.
David Mulugheta -- who represents Watson -- spoke about the mindset that the quarterback has currently, as his legal team continues to try to sort out 22 civil lawsuits that he's facing for sexual misconduct during massage appointments. A grand jury in Harris County, Texas is also weighing whether or not to charge Watson criminally.
"I think anybody who’s met Deshaun knows who he is," Mulugheta said to Ryan Clark, via Greg Rajan of The Houston Chronicle. “We know what the truth is and that’s a good thing about the truth — no matter what, the truth is the truth. Whether it takes one day or two days or a year to come out, the truth is the truth.
"We’re pretty confident how this thing plays out. He’s super confident in how it plays out. He’s still one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. He will be when he gets back on the field. He’ll continue to have an all-pro and phenomenal career moving forward.
"(In) today’s society, unfortunately it’s not about who’s right, it’s about who’s first. So it’s unfortunate but as somebody who’s considered … a public figure (there’s) certain things you’ve got to deal with. It’s unfortunate but we’ll deal with it."
The Dolphins and Houston Texans had serious traction on a trade for Watson in advance of the Nov. 2 trade deadline, but the deal wasn't completed because Miami owner Stephen Ross felt that all 22 civil lawsuits needed to have a resolution before a trade. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reports that four of the 22 women, for reasons unknown, were not prepared to reach a settlement with Watson at that time.
While Florio added that the Carolina Panthers -- who Watson ultimately wasn't interested in waiving his no-trade clause for -- were willing to trade for the star quarterback without a resolution to his civil lawsuits, all parties involved would seemingly benefit from a conclusion to the legal process. That includes the probe being done by the grand jury, which Florio hears could make a decision on how to proceed by the end of January 2022.
Even if Watson is able to settle his civil lawsuits and isn't ultimately charged criminally, there's still a very real possibility that he'll be suspended by the NFL for some portion of the 2022 season. But if suitors feel like the legal process is over, a potential suspension is unlikely to prevent them from expressing serious interest in Watson this upcoming offseason.
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