Cleveland Browns star QB, Deshaun Watson has officially been accused of his 25th sexual assault allegation. He will serve an 11-game suspension, without pay, and resume play on November 24 against the Houston Texans, his previous team. Watson will also pay a $5 million dollar fine. He has agreed to be evaluated and go through counseling in order to better himself.
The accusations started in March of 2021, since then he has been accused by 24 women of sexual assault. He has settled 23 of 24 civil lawsuits and was able to avoid criminal charges. He had been accused of sexual assault during massage therapy sessions. The Texans had been accused of enabling his behavior by providing him with resources to conduct these therapy sessions, including rooms and massage tables.
Watson will be eligible to come back to play in week 13 if he has been cleared by clinical experts. He must have team approved team massage sessions and club directed sessions for the remainder of his NFL career. This is set in place due to the accusations that were made when he would have personal massage sessions.
Watson has spoken little on the topic but in a press conference he said, “I’ve always stood on my innocence and always said, I’ve never assaulted or disrespected anyone, and I’ll continue to stand on that.”
Houston Attorney, Tony Buzbee, went at Roger Goodell stating,”By settling this matter the way he has, Roger Goodell has proven one of two things: either his recent rhetoric was utter baloney, or his bark is much worse than his bite. My belief is that he is nothing more than a paper tiger. The message today to all victims is clear, if you believe you have been sexually assaulted by a powerful person, keep your mouth shut and go away. The NFL has certainly demonstrated that its ownership and the organization don’t care.”
Watson’s lawyer, Rusty Hardin, says that occasionally at the massage there was a “happy ending” and that if it ever happened, it was not illegal. His lawyer believes that Watson is innocent and will remain that way. According to Hardin, Watson swore under oath that he did not force any of the accusers to have sexual contact with him.
Shortly after Hardin made that comment, Buzbee came back saying,”I think it speaks volumes to how he, his team and his client think about the massage industry,” Buzbee told Barr. “If you’re in the massage industry, according to Rusty Hardin, that’s to be expected. And apparently, that’s what his client expected. I promise you that’s not what any of these women expected.”
So far, Deshaun Watson still remains innocent until proven guilty.
