The Cleveland Browns took a big risk when they decided to trade for Deshaun Watson. He spent last season on the shelf but the NFL didn’t issue a suspension. Fast-forward to today, and he’s still waiting to know what the future will hold for him.
The league stated that they didn’t have enough information to issue a ruling at the moment. Now, however, it seems like the Commissioner is ready to dig deeper into his case and share a suspension sooner rather than later.
Moreover, Watson’s lawyer Rusty Hardin recently claimed that his legal turmoil has yet to pass. He’s still facing nearly two dozen civil lawsuits for alleged sexual misconduct, and there’s no intention of reaching a settlement.
NFL News: No Settlement Between Deshaun Watson And His Accusers:
(Transcript via ProFootballTalk)
“If the cases don’t settle, they’ll eventually have to go to trial. It’s now likely that the trials won’t begin until 2023. And it will be difficult if not impossible to conduct 22 trials during the 2023 offseason, especially if Watson intends to participate fully in the offseason program.
So what will the NFL do? Wait for the cases to end? Impose discipline now and be done with it? Discipline Watson now, while keeping the door open to discipline him later, based on how the cases unfold?”
Watson Doesn’t Expect A Trevor Bauer Kind Of Suspension
Some speculated that Watson could face a suspension similar to Trevor Bauer’s. MLB suspended him for two full years after an alleged sexual assault scandal. Watson’s camp, however, believes there’s no logical connection between the cases:
“I’m going to try to be an optimist and say it will have no effect at all,’’ Hardin said. “Because it has no logical connection.”
At the end of the day, it doesn’t seem like Watson will be under center in Week 1. And with Baker Mayfield all but done with the Browns, it’ll be the Jacoby Brissett show in Cleveland for the time being.