In article <t06051$28jco$18@news.freedyn.de>
fudgepacking queer <homosexuals@monkeypox.com> wrote:
>
> ...this nigger is done, stick a fork in him.

CLEVELAND, Ohio � The NFL has informed Deshaun Watson and his
camp, the NFL Players Association and Disciplinary Officer Sue
L. Robinson that it recommends an indefinite suspension for
Watson without pay for at least a year, sources confirmed for
cleveland.com.

Watson, 26, would be permitted to apply for reinstatement after
the season.

The indefinite ban for a minimum of a year under the Personal
Conduct Policy was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

If Robinson, who will begin hearing the case on Tuesday and hand
down the initial ruling, abides by the NFL�s recommendation,
Watson would potentially miss at least the entire 2022 season
and hope to get back on the field in 2023. Certain conditions
would have to be met, including likely continuing the counseling
sessions he acknowledged on June 14 he�s been undergoing.

But once the initial discipline is handed down, either side �
the NFL or NFLPA � can appeal to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell,
whose word would be final. As long as Robinson determines that
Watson has violated the policy and imposes a suspension, fine or
both, Goodell or a designee can amend it as they see fit.

The WSJ reported Saturday that during discussions between the
NFL and NFLPA, the league has refused to budge on anything less
than a one-year suspension for Watson, who sat out all last
season in Houston after asking to be traded and while embroiled
in the mounting lawsuits. He was paid his $10.54 million salary
while being a healthy scratch for all 17 games.

This season, the Browns set his base salary at $1.035 million in
a cap-saving move � the signing bonus was $44.965 million �
meaning he�d lose only $57,500 for every game he�s suspended.

Watson, accused of sexual misconduct by nearly 30 massage
therapists mostly in the Houston area, has maintained his
innocence throughout the process, repeating during mandatory
minicamp June 14 that �I never forced anyone, I never assaulted
anyone, so that�s what I�ve been saying it from the beginning
and I�m going to continue to do that until all the facts come
out on the legal side.�

Twenty-four of the women filed civil suits, 20 of which Watson
settled on June 21 not as an admission of guilt, a source said,
but to move forward with the process and his career. In
response, the NFL said the settlements would have no impact on
their disciplinary process. On Monday, one of the four remaining
plaintiffs also filed suit against the Houston Texans for
allegedly enabling Watson�s behavior.

If Watson is out for the season, he�ll presumably be replaced by
backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett, who�s gone 14-23 in his six-
year career. The Browns will add another quarterback, possibly
as a backup to Brissett, but are still in the process of trying
to trade Baker Mayfield and have no current plans to play him.

Depending on the final terms of Watson�s discipline, his
contract could roll until next season, meaning the clock
wouldn�t start on his NFL-record, fully-guaranteed $230 million
five-year contract until 2023. In that case, the Browns would
retain his rights through 2027.

Considering they�re paying him an NFL-high average of $46
million a year, it would be in Browns� best interests to have
him suspended indefinitely as opposed to a finite 17-game ban
that would wipe out the first season of the contract.

Under terms of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, the NFL had
to inform Watson, the union and Robinson of the recommended
discipline at least 10 days before the start of the hearing.

That coincides with the timing of Pro Football Talk�s Mike
Florio revealing that the NFLPA planned to vigorously fight the
punishment largely on the grounds that the league hasn�t come
down nearly as hard on NFL owners Bob Kraft of the Patriots,
Jerry Jones of the Cowboys and Daniel Snyder of the Commanders,
despite their direct or indirect involvement in allegations of
sexual misconduct by themselves or someone in their organization.

The NFLPA has brought in attorney Jeffrey Kessler, their heavy-
hitter, to argue Watson�s case. Kessler will undoubtedly cite
that two grand juries in Texas declined to indict Watson on
criminal charges, and that there�s no concrete evidence of
misconduct. Buzbee stated two weeks ago that he planned to file
two more suits on behalf of two more therapists, but they
haven�t been filed yet and might not be in the wake of the
settlements.

Buzbee did say in a statement on Monday however, that he�ll file
�many� more cases against the Texans for enabling Watson�s
alleged misconduct by arranging rooms at a hotel and providing
him with a non-disclosure agreement.

The NFL arrived at its recommendation for the indefinite ban for
a minimum of 17 games after a 15-month investigation led by
league attorneys Lisa Friel and Jennifer Gaffney, both former
prosecutors. They interviewed 11 of the 24 plaintiffs, and
Watson on two occasions for a total of four hours. The WSJ
reported the NFL will focus on five accusers who have the
strongest cases, and back it up with text messages of the their
accounts, which they say establish a pattern of disturbing
behavior on the part of Watson.

Watson�s lawyer, Rusty Hardin, told cleveland.com earlier this
month that the NFL would make its final ruling on Watson before
the July 27 start of training camp. Depending on the terms of
the discipline, Watson might be able to participate in training
camp, but he won�t be permitted to play in the preseason games.
The hearing can take a couple of days this week, or longer.

Throughout the spring, the Browns have stood by Watson and are
still all in on him despite an enormous national backlash. On
March 18, Watson chose the Browns from among his four suitors in
part because of the groundbreaking contract, and they sent six
draft picks to the Texans, including three first-rounders,
fourth-rounders in 2022 and 2024, and a third-rounder in 2023.

At that point, many believed Watson would be suspended somewhere
in the neighborhood of six to eight games, with a chance to
reduce that upon appeal.

For comparison�s sake, Ben Roethlisberger was suspended six
games in 2010 after a 20-year-old college student accused him of
sexually assaulting her in a Georgia nightclub, and had it
reduced to four. Browns running back Kareem Hunt was suspended
eight games in 2019 for two separate altercations, including one
involving a woman. Like Watson, neither had been criminally
charged.

https://www.cleveland.com/browns/2022/06/nfl-has-informed-
deshaun-watson-the-union-and-the-disciplinary-officer-it-
recommends-an-indefinite-suspension-of-at-least-a-year.html