As the Labor Day weekend drew to a close, the Houston Texans announced that they had benched the team’s quarterback Deshaun Watson. According to the Texans, Watson was benched by the NFL team as a result of multiple allegations of sexual assault and other types of misconduct.
25-year-old Deshaun Watson signed a four-year extension with the Texans in 2020. The contract included the second-highest guaranteed salary in NFL history, with a total value at $111 million.
Length of Suspension Undetermined
At the present time, no specific information is available concerning how long Watson will be benched. He has definitely been benched from the Texans’ first game of the season on September 6, 2021. Tyrod Taylor will be the teams starting quarterback for the game, according to Head Coach David Culley. The Texans will be facing the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Texans front office has released no further information about Watson’s future with the team. As of Sunday evening, September 6, Watson remains on the active roster for the team, according to reporting from ESPN.
Allegations of Sexual Assault Against Deshaun Watson Mount
As of the Labor Day holiday, 22 women are now accusing the Texans starting quarterback of sexual assault. The allegations against Watson include:
- Exposing himself to masseuses
- Exposing himself to other women hired to provide personal services
- Pressuring masseuses into performing oral sex during massages
- Touching a woman’s vagina
- Touching a woman’s buttocks
- Other acts of inappropriate sexual touching
All 22 women alleging sexual misconduct on the part of Watson have now filed lawsuits against him. The allegations that are at the heart of this litigation is said to have occurred between March 2020 and March of this year. All of the lawsuits have been filed in Harris County, Texas. As is discussed in a moment, Watson is aggressively defending himself against these allegations.
Watson Denies Allegations of Sexual Improprieties
Watson has consistently denied that he engaged in any inappropriate conduct with the women making allegations against him. His legal counsel has advised that Watson did engage in consensual sexual acts with some of the women who have filed lawsuits against him.
Watson personally has made only one statement about all of the allegations being made against him. That statement was made via Twitter and was a ubiquitous denial of all allegations.
His legal counsel has taken the general denial a step further by remarking that some of the women are “lying” to obtain money. The attorney also stated that some of the women “bragged” to their associated about sexual contact with Watson after the alleged incidents occurred.
Multiple Investigations Opened into Watson Matter
The National Football League has launched an investigation into the allegations being made against the Texans quarterback. There is no information at this time about the state of that investigation.
The Houston Police Department has also initiated an investigation into the matter. As is the case with the NFL, there is no current information about the state of that inquiry.
The FBI evidently has also started it own investigation into matters arising out of the allegations being made against Watson. Unlike the other two referenced investigations, the FBI appears to be focusing on whether or not some or all of these women are involved in some type of scheme to extort money from the professional football player.