Punishing Player Misconduct: Will the NFL Ever Get it Right?

Consider This from NPR

NPR

News, Daily News, Society & Culture, News Commentary

4.2 • 6.2K Ratings

🗓️ 3 December 2022

⏱️ 13 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On Sunday, Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson will return to the field for the first time in nearly two years. This comes after an 11-game suspension and $5 million fine imposed by the NFL after more than two dozen female massage therapists filed allegations against him ranging from sexual misconduct to sexual assault.

The allegations stem from incidents that occurred in 2020 and 2021, while Watson was a quarterback for the Houston Texans. And while he doesn't face criminal charges, the sheer number of women coming forward with similar accounts is striking - but not, striking enough to deter Cleveland from signing Watson -in time for the 2022 season -with a five-year $230 million deal

The NFL has faced criticism in the past for how it handles cases like Watson's, and many critics say the fine and suspension don't go far enough.

Host Michel Martin speaks with Kevin Blackstione, a sports columnist for the Washington Post and ESPN panelist, about how the NFL might better handle allegations of player misconduct against women.

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	My name is Ashley Solis.
0:02.0	Remember that name?
0:04.0	I am a survivor of assault and harassment.
0:08.0	The Sean Watson is my officer in my harbester.
0:12.0	In March 2021, Ashley Solis, a licensed massage therapist, filed a lawsuit against NFL player
0:18.7	DeSean Watson.
0:19.7	Here's what I want to tell you that in this segment there's going to be language pertaining
0:23.4	to sexual assault.
0:25.2	Solis says that Watson deliberately put his exposed penis on her hand during a massage
0:30.0	appointment in 2020 when Watson was a quarterback with a Houston Texans.
0:34.9	Solis is one of more than two dozen massage therapists who have described similar encounters
0:39.4	with Watson, citing behavior that they say ranges from wildly unprofessional and lured to coercion
0:45.7	and sexual assault.
0:47.4	While Watson doesn't face criminal charges, the sheer number of women coming forward
0:51.6	with similar accounts is striking, but not apparently striking enough to deter the Cleveland
0:56.5	Browns from signing Watson in time for the 2022 season with a $230 million deal.
1:02.2	I understand that you guys have a lot of questions, but with my legal team and my clinical team,
1:10.7	there's only football questions that I can really address at this time.
1:14.1	We'll repeat none of the complaints resulted in criminal charges, grand juries, and two
1:18.2	Texas counties declined to issue indictments, but there were other consequences, along with
1:23.3	settlements in 23 out of 24 civil lawsuits, and 11 games suspension and a $5 million fine
1:29.8	was imposed by the NFL for violating their personal conduct policy.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from NPR, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of NPR and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.