Watson settles 20 civil suits, still faces NFL suspension
Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson has reached an agreement to settle 20 of the 24 civil lawsuits that had been filed by women who accused him of sexual assault and harassment, an attorney for the women said Tuesday.
Watson, who has been accused by massage therapists of harassing, assaulting or touching them during appointments when he was playing for the Houston Texans, could still be suspended if the NFL determines he violated the league’s personal conduct policy.
“Today I announce that all cases against Deshaun Watson, with the exception of four, have settled. We are working through the paperwork related to those settlements,” Houston attorney Tony Buzbee said in a statement. “Once we have done so, those particular cases will be dismissed.”
Buzbee, who represents all 24 women, said the terms of the settlements are “confidential” and that his legal team “won’t comment further on the settlements or those cases.”
The first 22 lawsuits were filed in March and April 2021. The last two lawsuits were filed after HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel” aired an interview last month with two of the women who detailed their encounters with Watson.
The settlement also comes after The New York
Times reported earlier this month that Watson had booked massage appointments with at least 66 different women over 17 months while he played for the Texans. The report also said that a Texans representative had provided Watson with a nondisclosure agreement that he gave to some of the women to sign.
Rusty Hardin, Watson’s lead attorney, did not immediately return an email or a text seeking comment.
Last week, Watson said he intended to clear his name and sidestepped any questions about whether he would settle with any of the women.
“I never assaulted anyone,” Watson said
June 14 in his first public comments since being introduced by the Browns in March. “I never harassed anyone or I never disrespected anyone. I never forced anyone to do anything.”
In March, two separate Texas grand juries declined to indict Watson on criminal complaints stemming from the allegations.
Cleveland then signed Watson to a fully guaranteed, five-year, $230 million contract in March, convincing the three-time Pro Bowler to waive his no-trade clause and join a team with solid roster.
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said the settlements have “no impact on the collectively bargained disciplinary process.”
And a league official told The Associated Press “settling doesn’t give someone a pass” and indicated a lengthy suspension remains in order.
GRONK RETIRES
Four-time All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski announced his retirement again, meaning he will not join Tom Brady for a third season in Tampa
Bay.
In an Instagram post Tuesday, the four-time Super Bowl champion with the Patriots and Buccaneers thanked his teammates and coaches over the years and said he’s going back to “chilling out.”
Gronkowski had 621 catches for 9,286 yards and 92 touchdowns in the regular season. He had 98 receptions for 1,389 yards and 15 TDs in the postseason.
‘FITZMAGIC’ THE ANALYST
Ryan Fitzpatrick is taking his magic touch to the broadcast booth.
Amazon Prime Video announced Tuesday that Fitzpatrick, the recently retired journeyman quarterback nicknamed “FitzMagic,” is joining the streaming service as an analyst for its first season as the exclusive home of “Thursday Night Football.”
Fitzpatrick will be part of Amazon’s pregame, halftime and postgame coverage.
Although the 39-yearold started for a record nine teams over his 17year career, only one of this year’s Thursday night matchups features two of his former teams: the Cincinnati Bengals hosting the Miami Dolphins on Sept. 29.
Fitzpatrick joins Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez and All-Pro cornerback Richard Sherman as studio analysts. Al Michaels will be the play-by-play announcer with Kirk Herbstreit as his booth partner.