The NFL is tentatively preparing to return to action in September for regular season games.
Before that, the teams’ camps are in motion and a preparatory calendar will place the final details before the official start of the campaign.
It’s the usual poutine. Players are discovering their new teammates, others are returning to the pitch after long injuries and some are preparing to give the helm of their careers a boost.
There are also, on occasion (and too often in the NFL), problematic cases that we have to deal with when talking about the Goodell circuit.
The patron saint of these problematic scenarios right now is undoubtedly Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson.
Last season, the former Houston Texans star was suspended for 11 games by the NFL in connection with allegations of sexual misconduct directed against him by more than 20 women.
Of the lot, no criminal charges and 23 out-of-court settlements with the alleged victims.
Watson served his suspension and then began his season with the Browns, hundreds of millions of dollars richer after signing the bottom of a lucrative contract offered by Cleveland despite the allegations.
It was last year, a campaign marked by controversy for the star quarterback after a season of absence due to the charges against him.
Since then, no real resolution. He is participating in an awareness program imposed by the NFL and he was fined $5 million. A drop in the pool of money filled by the Browns to lure him to Cleveland to save the organization from an endless playoff drought.
With training camp and everyone’s return to play imminent, Watson, of course, has to face up to his responsibilities and face questions from reporters.
His approach? Draw attention elsewhere.
Watson blames the media for the “narrative” of at least 25 women suing him for sexual harassment and abuse.
Zero remorse. So much for the league-mandated counseling, treatment and clinicians. pic.twitter.com/4lDNQZmBkZ
— Stephen Andress (@StephenAndress1)
July 23, 2023
playing ostrich
This excerpt from a press briefing places a funny perspective on the story he wants to tell, that is to say the one he wants us to observe on the ground.
Because Watson, to drown the fish, wants us to talk about football. He wants people to talk about his career exploits and the unlikelihood of his rise due to his family background. He wants us to talk about the exceptional athlete he is and the excellence project he has for the Cleveland Browns.
In order not to apologize, at least, for these alleged misconducts, he wants us to talk about something else because the media, according to him, tint the perspective in relation to his career.
And it is here that the discomfort sets in with his feet on the table to demonstrate that he never intended to leave the room.
Already, the gargantuan contract signed during his suspension is an insult to the intelligence of the 25 women who dared to denounce his actions.
Then, that we return to normal by talking about football, victories and defeats on the ground, it is a bit hypocritical.
But there, that one points the media to paint it under an unfavorable portrait, it is quite simply unacceptable.
Deshaun Watson has not served time and has no criminal record. It’s true. In theory, his debt to society is settled.
But decency isn’t just about doing the bare minimum to fulfill the terms of a contract. Because here, we must not delude ourselves, Deshaun Watson accepted a contract from the NFL to restore his image in order to play football in peace despite everything.
He shows no remorse and, despite his remarks to the contrary, he does not seem to have really changed since he is not able to address things head on.
He diverts attention, shifts the blame onto someone else, and ultimately wishes to move on to another call without having actually faced the music.
Ah yes, he missed eleven games last season. But do you know many of the people who get three months of paid vacation in exchange for $200 million?
To ask the question is to raise the lack of delicacy of Watson, the Browns and the NFL in this file.
And that is a big problem that must be addressed before talking about football as if nothing had happened.
2023-07-24 18:24:00
#NFL #Deshaun #Watson #problem
