Deshaun Watson apologizes to women impacted amid appeal process

For the first time in a long time, Deshaun Watson is going to be suited up on a football field. He will be playing for the Cleveland Browns as their preseason begins against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Friday night.

Before the game, Watson spoke with Aditi Kinkhabwala, with the Browns’ Twitter account posting the entire conversation. The quarterback apologized to the women he has “impacted” in the situation. Watson also wants to move forward from everything, even as his suspension length looms in the background.

“I’m truly sorry to all the women that I’ve impacted in this situation,” Watson said. “(There are) decisions that I made in my life that put me in this position I would definitely like to have back, but I want to continue to move forward and grow and learn and show that I am a true character and I am going to keep pushing forward.”

As things stand, Watson is suspended for six games but NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has appealed the decision. There’s thought that Cleveland will be without their quarterback for an entire year. The exact number is not known but Watson will be away from football for some time.

When asked how he will spend that time off, Watson said he wants to grow on and off the field. Being ready to play will be a top priority but also getting involved with the community around him is what Watson will do while suspended.

“I know I have a lot of work to put in, especially on the field to be able to make sure I’m ready to play when that time comes whenever I get back onto the field, but also, the biggest thing is I want to continue counseling and I want to make sure that I’m growing as a person, as an individual for my decision making on and off the field. I want to make sure that I’m just evolving in the community as much as possible, and that is for the Cleveland community, that is the NFL community, and beyond.”

At least on Friday night, Watson will have the opportunity to focus on an actual football game. It might be the preseason but he was not on the field for the Houston Texans last season. As to when he will play in a regular season again is unclear but should be known in the near future.