Embattled Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson has reached confidential settlements with 20 of the 24 women suing him over allegations of sexual misconduct, according to an announcement by the plaintiffs’ attorney.
The NFL star previously told reporters he had no plans to settle the lawsuits and has maintained his innocence since first being accused of sexual misconduct by female massage therapists 15 months earlier. Specifically, Watson has been accused of forcing two women to perform oral sex on him, ejaculating on three women, and forcibly kissing another, while 18 women say he touched them with his penis during massages.
The alleged incidents took place over 17 months from the fall 2019 through spring 2021, when Watson played for the Houston Texans. In March, after two Texas grand juries declined to press charges against him, Watson was traded to the Browns, who rewarded him with a five-year deal, worth a guaranteed $230 million.
Embattled Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson has reached confidential settlements with 20 of the 24 women suing him over allegations of sexual misconduct, according to the plaintiffs’ attorney
‘Today I announce that all cases against Deshaun Watson, with the exception of four, have settled,’ plaintiffs attorney Tony Buzbee said in a statement. ‘We are working through the paperwork related to those settlements. Once we have done so, those particular cases will be dismissed. The terms and amounts of the settlements are confidential. We won’t comment further on the settlements or those cases.’
Two grand juries have declined to press charges against Watson over complaints filed by women who have already sued the 26-year-old quarterback. Watson’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, previously accused the plaintiffs of lying while insisting that the NFL star is completely innocent. Hardin has also said that any sexual contact between his client and the plaintiffs was entirely consensual.
The NFL has an ongoing investigation into the claims and can still punish Watson for violating the league’s personal conduct policy, with or without a guilty verdict. Watson has given a deposition to NFL investigators as part of that probe.
One of the four accusers who have not settled their case with Watson is Ashley Solis, who was the first plaintiff to file a lawsuit.
‘The cases against Deshaun Watson started with one phone call, from one brave and strong woman,’ Buzbee stated. ‘That woman was Ashley Solis.
‘As a result of Ashley’s lone but brave voice, soon many women who had allegedly experienced the same conduct were emboldened to step forward. I am incredibly proud to represent them all. They have endured vile criticism and fanatical ignorance.’
In addition to the four outstanding lawsuits, Buzbee has previously said he expects two more sexual misconduct filings naming Watson.
‘I never assaulted anyone,’ Watson said on June 14 as the Browns held their mandatory minicamp. ‘I never harassed anyone or I never disrespected anyone. I never forced anyone to do anything.’
The plaintiffs’ attorney Tony Buzbee (left) and Watson’s attorney Rusty Hardin (right)
WATSON’S $230MILLION DEAL COULD HELP HIM AVOID A MAJOR FINANCIAL PENALTY IF HE IS SUSPENDED BY THE NFL IN 2022
By Alex Raskin, Sports News Editor for DailyMail.com
The Browns traded for Deshaun Watson in March, sending three future first-round picks and a fourth-rounder to Houston. Watson waived his no-trade clause to facilitate the deal, which came with a fully guaranteed, five-year, $230 million contract that included a $44.5 million signing bonus.
Since then, the Browns have been criticized for that contract, which replaced the four-year, $177.5 million extension he signed with the Texans in 2020.
Specifically, critics objected to the structure of deal, which pays Watson only $1 million in 2022, when he could face a potential suspension over sexual misconduct claims, and $46 million annually over the final four years.
This way, if Watson is suspended in 2022, he’ll lose around $60,000 per game missed.
For comparison, were his contract structured evenly over the next five years, he’d lose more than $2 million for every game he’s suspended.
Browns general manager Andrew Berry (left) and head coach Kevin Stefanski (right) both said they understood the criticism surrounding their acquisition of Watson and his contract. However, they insisted they’re confident in ‘Deshaun the person’ following a five-month team-funded investigation that began last fall, when Watson was being benched in Houston in the aftermath of the allegations
Browns GM Andrew Berry defended the structure of the contract in March, saying the Browns back loaded the deal to allow for more roster flexibility this year, when they still hope to add more talent to the roster.
‘The things that were important to us from a club perspective were to… have Deshaun Watson under contract for another year, have it structured in a manner that would allow us maximum flexibility to execute the rest of our off-season plan,’ Berry said.
The team still has last year’s starting quarterback, Baker Mayfield, on the books with an $18 million base salary for 2022.
At Watson’s introductory press conference in March, Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski both said they understood the criticism surrounding their acquisition of the quarterback and his contract. However, they insisted they’re confident in ‘Deshaun the person’ following a five-month team-funded investigation that began last fall, when Watson was being benched in Houston in the aftermath of the allegations.
The New York Times reported earlier this month that Watson booked appointments with at least 66 different women over 17 months while he played for the Texans. Previously Hardin estimated he had appointments with about 40 female massage therapists over his five seasons with the Texans.
Not every woman has accused Watson of sexual misconduct, and 15 have issued statements of support for him at his attorney’s request.
Following the publication of the Times piece, the Texans were added as a defendant in the sexual misconduct lawsuits for allegedly facilitating the massages. The NFL club is accused of securing Watson a membership at a local hotel and private club, the Houstonian, where some of the massages were alleged to have taken place.
One woman, who massaged Watson at the hotel but is not identified in the article, told the Times that she was told the room they used was ‘registered to a member of the Texans’ training staff.’
Watson and his legal team had been adamant he wouldn’t settle the lawsuits. on June 14, he was asked if recent filings against him have changed his stance.
‘I just want to clear my name and be able to let the facts and the legal procedures continue to play out,’ he said.
Watson also acknowledged last week that he’s been receiving counseling since joining the Browns.
Some of Watson’s accusers are pictured in a Texas courtroom, where the first of two grand juries declined to press charges related to the sexual misconduct lawsuits against the NFL star
Ashley Solis, second right, the first woman to file sexual assault claims against Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson, gives a statement during a news conference with attorney Tony Buzbee and his legal team on April 6, 2021, in Houston. Solis’s lawsuit hasn’t been settled
Watson is facing similar accusations from other women, who have not filed suit against him.
One such woman, who refused to be identified due to concerns about her family’s privacy, told the Times that Watson was ‘begging’ her to put her mouth on his penis.
‘I specifically had to say, ”No, I can’t do that,”’ she told the Times. ‘And that’s when I went into asking him, ”What is it like being famous? Like, what’s going on? You’re about to mess up everything.”’
Another woman who did not sue Watson told the Times that he tried to initiate sex during each of the three appointments she had with him.
The Times’ revelations came shortly after Watson was sued by a 23rd and 24th woman earlier this month.
Several of the massage therapists allegedly met Watson at a local hotel and private club, the Houstonian, where the Texans had reportedly secured him a membership
The Houstonian (pictured) is a private club and hotel in Houston, where Watson was massaged
According to the report, which includes excerpts from civil suit depositions and interviews with some of the women, Watson’s behavior was far more egregious than previously known, and the Texans may have been aware of the problem.
It still remains unclear why he repeatedly met with so many new massage therapists. Hardin, his attorney, previously claimed his client needed to book appointments ‘ad hoc’ during the pandemic.
The Texans allegedly secured Watson a membership at the Houstonian, an upscale hotel and private club, where many of the massages are said to have taken place.
One masseuse declined to meet with Watson at the hotel, saying she wanted to keep things ‘professional and respectful’ due to the fact that she knew his girlfriend, and had once babysat the woman and a younger sibling years earlier.
‘Oh most definitely always professional,’ he responded via text, as quoted by the Times. ‘I even have a NDA I have therapist sign too.’
That nondisclosure agreement was allegedly provided to Watson by Brent Naccara, a former Secret Service agent who serves as the Texans’ directory of security. Watson reportedly received the document from Naccara after telling the Texans staffer about Instagram posts from one woman, Nia Smith, who was threatening to expose the quarterback’s behavior.
Katy Williams, a former masseuse residing in Texas, filed suit in Harris County on Monday, claiming the 26-year-old NFL star exposed his erect penis and began masturbating during a session in August of 2020. Williams says she called a friend to report the incident after it happened and quit the profession shortly after being ‘mortified’ by Watson’s conduct
Katy Williams, a former masseuse residing in Texas, filed suit in Harris County earlier this month, claiming he exposed his erect penis and began masturbating during a session in August of 2020. Williams says she called a friend to report the incident afterwards and ultimately quit the profession.
A footnote included in the 23rd sexual misconduct lawsuit against Watson recently revealed that the NFL star’s legal team offered $100,000 settlements to the other 22 plaintiffs on the condition they agree to an ‘aggressive’ non-disclosure clause.
‘Of course, we now know that Deshaun Watson offered each Plaintiff $100,000 to settle their cases, but not all would accept that amount, due to the aggressive nondisclosure agreement that Watson’s team proposed,’ read a footnote contained in Nia Smith’s lawsuit against Watson filed in earlier this month.
When contacted by DailyMail.com, a spokesperson for Hardin declined to confirm if the defendant offered $100,000 settlements to the plaintiffs.
This footnote, contained in Nia Smith’s lawsuit against Watson, revealed the $100,000 offer
This wasn’t the first report of a $100,000 settlement offer by Watson to his accusers, most of whom work as licensed massage therapists in the Houston area. In January, the Daily Beast published a settlement offer to an unidentified plaintiff, stipulating that she agree to dismiss the lawsuit with prejudice ‘within 24 hours’ and comply with a non-disparagement clause that bars her from criticizing Watson publicly.
The woman did not sign the settlement offer, according to the January piece in the Daily Beast.
Hardin previously told podcaster and attorney Gabe Feldman that the Miami Dolphins wanted Watson to offer settlements that included NDA language when the team was considering acquiring him from Houston, where he played from 2017 until 2021. Hardin told Feldman on his podcast that Buzbee wanted the NDA because he was trying to hide the relatively meager settlements his clients would receive.
The Daily Beast previously published one $100,000 offer, which explains that Watson would only enter into the agreement to ‘buy peace’ but continues to deny the allegations
As explained in the offer, Watson would not concede any guilt in the lawsuits
Smith, a licensed cosmetologist from the Houston area, says she had three separate encounters with Watson in 2020, and claims his ‘behavior grew worse during every massage.’ According to Smith’s lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Harris County, Watson demanded she ‘go inside of his anus’ during their first appointment before grabbing her buttocks and repeatedly asking ‘if she wanted his penis in her mouth’ at their second. At one point,
‘Plaintiff was feeling extremely uncomfortable by this point, but she wanted to stay professional and not cause any conflict,’ read Tuesday’s filing. ‘Watson was much bigger and much stronger, and they were alone in a room. She was deathly afraid of what he would do if she reprimanded him.’
During their third meeting, Smith claims, Watson ‘repeatedly requested that [she] have sex with him.’
Smith did not want to go through with the third massage, according to the complaint, but felt ‘she could not refuse’ because of pressure from her boss at A New U Salon Spa, Dionne Louis. According to Smith, Louis ‘facilitated massages’ for Watson, for which she was paid at least $5,000. Smith said she complained about Watson to Louis, but those concerns were dismissed by her boss, who knew that the quarterback was pressuring her into sex.
DailyMail.com’s attempts to contact Louis have been unsuccessful thus far.
Smith says she finished her third appointment with Watson by massaging him ‘from a distance as a way to avoid his groping.’
Afterwards, she says, Smith quit her job. She also says she’s suffering from depression, anxiety, and panic attacks as a result of her encounters with Watson.
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