NFL demonstrating how tough it is on sexual assault, tough, really, really tough.
Deshaun Watson suspended for six games.
- Thread starter GrimReaper
- Start date
New precedent: 4 molestations = 1 game suspension. Brady got 6 FOR DEFLATING FOOTBALLS. If the NFL doesn't appeal this, the backlash will be overwhelming. The only justice I can see coming is if TJ Watt hits Watson so hard that knocks his head from his body.
Actually it’s 1 game for each offense, but the first 18 are free.
TB12 received 4 games for letting air out of footballs
Watson sexually assaulted 20+ women and gets 6 games... seems reasonable
Watson sexually assaulted 20+ women and gets 6 games... seems reasonable
Well, Brady's suspension was stupid, but so is this one. I'm still struggling to know exactly what he did "wrong." So far it seems he was what would be considered a pig. Other than that? No criminal charges, just a guy who obviously hired massage therapists to try to hook up.
Browns away games may get interesting with signage.
He was technically suspended with pay last season so it'll be 6 games on top of that. That being said:
If it included pay, it wasn't a suspension. Pretty sure it was his choice to not play.
He was a healthy scratch by the Texans each week but still kept on the roster. They were looking for trade partners throughout the season. Formally suspending him (conduct detrimental to the team) could have shut down trade talks all together, even though it seems that's what happened anyhow until the season ended. So yes, you're correct but he was never going to play a game for the Texans last season no matter what. That's why I qualified my initial post with "technically".
Total BS, no worry for the Steelers because the Browns are still just the Browns and where QB‘s go to kill their careers. Since Ben led the Steelers in 2004 the Browns have had 27 starting QB’s. Watson will just be another bust. It does not matter how good he was before because now he is on the Browns and will suck.
My interest in the NFL is a function approaching zero, so I honestly know very, very little wrt the whole Watson affair. Someone help me out, was Watson ever convicted of any criminal act? Honestly, I don't know, and don't want to wade through the "sports talk" muck to try to dig up the real story.
This equates to about a one quarter suspension for each woman who alleged he assaulted them and whom he paid to settle their allegations so there would not be a trial. Speaks volumes about who and what the NFL stands for.
Interesting that you should ask that question.
Watson was accused by a number of women of "sexual assault" during their consensual massage meetings. Of course, the media and public opinion convicted him of those crimes.
Yet, when the prosecutors presented their case against him in front of not one, but two grand juries, neither grand jury saw enough evidence to charge him with any crimes. Those of you that are familiar with the workings of a grand jury know that grand juries are "one sided" in that only the prosecutors provide their evidence of a crime. There is no defense for the accused - that would come later in an actual trial if the accused were charged with a crime.
Hmmmm ... where have we seen that type of situation before where someone is absolutely guilty in the eyes of the media and public opinion, even if they didn't do anything wrong? Does the name Joe Paterno ring a bell?
Lack of indictment does not mean innocent, as I am sure you know. 24 x 6-figure payoffs probably do not scream innocent either.
So, I guess you think Sandusky molested every victim that PSU settled with, right?
Just to be clear, I am not advocating that JS was innocent. I am just pointing out that there is often a wide gap between the truth and what is reported in the media.
For me, the outlandish amounts of the JS settlements were the issue as much as the questionable evidence. In the DW case, he never claimed to not have been with these therapists, hell the team paid their fees in many cases. It is the dead-on consistency of the messaging from the victims.
No as of today there’s only 1 accussor left all the others have w/d their complaints. It was a money grab
Criminal charges are irrelevant to whether NFL can dish out punishment for violation of the personal conduct policy. The guy who really got screwed was Zeke Elliott. No criminal charges were filed. The alleged victim was involved in a physical fight with another woman several days before she made her claims against Elliott which resulted in bruises and abrasions. She also sent out emails which said she was out to get him. The NFL investigator, a woman who was the only person to interview the “victim” and Elliott filed a report which said the woman was not credible and recommended no punishment. Nevertheless, Mr. PC Goodell, who was the judge, jury and executioner on league discipline back then, gave him 6 games. That suspension played a large role in the NFLPA insisting on the current discipline system under the new bargaining agreement.
If I would have done that when I was his age my boss would have told me off, in no uncertain terms, and kicked my *** out the door.
Guilt and shame are things of the past. Our nation is worse off because of it.
Guilt and shame are things of the past. Our nation is worse off because of it.
I understand the argument that no indictment was handed down. But these are classic he said-she said cases, and there is no physical evidence. So I can understand why it would be extremely difficult to charge him with a crime. But something happened between Watson and these women. He paid them a lot of money, as did the Houston Texans, and I respectfully submit that would not have happened if there was not a lot of evidence which made both Watson and Houston assess their positions and conclude the safer route was to pay. I don't think it is a coincidence that civil suits were settled, where a lower standard of proof is required, and Watson would have been much more vulnerable. To pick up on the Sandusky analogy that was made earlier, and just speaking for myself, I could believe that one woman would make up a story to extort some cash. Maybe two. Possibly three. But 24??? That's hard for me to believe. And one question I have wondered about this matter. Why would Watson need 24 different women to give him a massage? One would think at least a few of them would be good enough at their profession to get the job permanently. Could it be he needed 24 because with each one, they refused to come back due to his behavior?
Ben = 6 games for 2 accusers and no criminal charges.
Watson = 6 games for nearly 30 accusers and no criminal charges.
Hmm. The math doesn’t seem to add up to me.
Watson = 6 games for nearly 30 accusers and no criminal charges.
Hmm. The math doesn’t seem to add up to me.
A couple things here for your consideration. It's not a "he-said she-said" in a grand jury. The grand jury is not presented with his side of the argument. It is solely provided with the prosecution's argument. As a former persecutor myself, I'd say 95% of our cases sent to a grand jury get moved forward. It's a very small percentage (and usually when there is a public or political reason that a garbage case was presented at all) that a case doesn't get past the grand jury. The bar is that low.
The consistency of the messaging from the victims, and the number of them, also makes clear he had an MO. He liked to hire massage girls to try to sleep with them. That's obvious. But that's also not a crime, unless he was forcing them to do something against their consent. The other consistency to be considered, is that all of these women consistently never went to the police afterwards. Now I understand sexual assault is an underreported crime, but when we're supposedly talking about 30+ women, and none ever went straight to police? That's also a consistency worth considering.
With respect to settlement, I do not think its a coincidence either, but for different reason. Those cases would drag out for years, they would involve embarrassing discovery and depositions that would leak, it would be a constant drumbeat against anything else Watson was doing, even if he were completely innocent. When you just got $230mm guaranteed, that's not a lot to pay to have all of that be behind you and done with. Cases are constantly settled where one party is entirely innocent, because there are so many other factors at stake.
All that to say that I'm not saying Deshaun is innocent, or that all these women are lying. I'm just saying that there hasn't been enough for me to say he should be punished, unless we're punishing guys for being pigs, and if that's the case, shut the league down.
Have you ever read the stories and outrageous claims of each of the Sandusky accusers?
Summarizing what I heard from an interview with a reporter who covered Watson. From 2019-2021, he contacted 66 massage therapists privately on Instagram for massage appointments. During some exchanges, he would express disappointment when the therapist couldn't accommodate him for same-day service. His MO was to either be entirely naked or he would cover himself with a small towel. He would try to coerce sexual activity by telling them how well it would help their businesses to have him as a client. After he allegedly brushed his penis against Ashley Solis, he told her it wouldn't be good for her career and reputation if this got out. Apparently, the Texans head of security who was ex-secret service agent gave Watson a NDA agreement that he started taking with him to appointments.
A professional athlete who wants a massage doesn't need to privately contact women on instagram. If he wanted sexual favors, someone could have arranged that for him too. This guy got a thrill out of leveraging his status to coerce everyday women into sexual activity. Mindboggling that the Browns who appeared to be developing into a legitimate franchise through the draft would invest $230M guaranteed into someone displaying such predatory behavior.
A professional athlete who wants a massage doesn't need to privately contact women on instagram. If he wanted sexual favors, someone could have arranged that for him too. This guy got a thrill out of leveraging his status to coerce everyday women into sexual activity. Mindboggling that the Browns who appeared to be developing into a legitimate franchise through the draft would invest $230M guaranteed into someone displaying such predatory behavior.
All fair points, but if you read this judge's report she clearly states things like "predator behavior", "clear non-violent sexual assault", clearly he (DW) was not being truthful... and my favorite, banned from visiting any non team sanctioned massage therapist for entirety of career.
So six games? Clearly she wants to continue to be the "go-to" arbiter/mediator for players union and owners so she gave a gutless ruling and kicked can back to Goodell so he can decide more or not.
And someone needs to explain to me what non violent sexual assault is... I guess showing someone your junk?
What do you mean by “so he can decide more or not”? I’m sure if he had his way, she would have suspended Watson for the 2022 season. Instead, the NFL now has to fight it if they want to get the penalty that they want.
This is how eff-ed up this process is. Basically, Goodell is no longer judge/jury/executioner. Instead they have this judge to make a decision. HOWEVER, the owners can appeal. Who do they appeal to? Rodger Goodell. So he's gone from being the court judge to the appellant judge.
If he bumps this to 8-12 games it will disaffect the judge they have brought into this process. If he leaves it as is he will suffer the sever wrath of the female portion of the fan base.
Interesting…I assumed others would have input, but sounds like the ball is fully in Goodell’s court. I’m sure he would have loved a bigger suspension from the Arbiter as now he’s in a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” situation.
Thanks for the analysis. None of that however has anything to do with punishment under the NFL personal conduct policy. Ask Zeke Elliiott
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