The Cleveland Browns are reportedly standing by embattled quarterback Deshaun Watson, despite the latest allegations made against him. The Browns are not even considering voiding the $230 million guaranteed contract they gave to Watson, according to Cleveland.com writer Mary Kay Cabot. Nor do they want to dissolve the trade that sent six draft picks to the Houston Texans for Watson.
Earlier this week, news surfaced that two more women have brought civil suits against Watson. That brings the total to 24 lawsuits. The newest allegations involve even more vile behavior allegedly committed by Watson during massage sessions.
When the Browns traded for Watson, there were 22 known civil suits. Cleveland was aware of them and claimed that they had done their due diligence looking into the matter. However, the New York Times recently reported that Watson had actually set up massage sessions with 66 different women over a 17-month span. With new plaintiffs coming forward, and the acknowledgement from Watson's lawyer, Rusty Hardin, that they had never heard that woman's name before, it stands to reason that this is entirely new information.
The National Football League had stated publicly that they were close to finishing their independent investigation. However, this likely throws a monkey wrench into the whole thing. The Houston Texans are supposedly being added as defendants in the case against Watson. The Houston franchise allegedly set up appointments and provided hotel rooms for the quarterback.
According to Mike Florio at NBC Sports, the Browns did build particular language with added protections in the contract. However, it appears that their public stance at this point is to stand by their new quarterback. That decision has angered fans and the $230 million guaranteed has reportedly angered other NFL owners. It's not a good look for Cleveland.
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