Browns’ Stefanski Gives Plan on QB Status As Team Awaits Watson Ruling

Editors’ note: This story contains accounts of sexual assault. If you or someone you know is a survivor of sexual assault, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 or at https://www.rainn.org.

There is still no news on impartial arbitrator Sue L. Robinson’s ruling on Deshaun Watson’s status for the upcoming season, but the Browns do have a plan as the league heads into training camp. 

Coach Kevin Stefanski said, “Jacoby [Brissett is] our backup quarterback. If Deshaun [Watson is] unavailable, Jacoby’s our starter.” 

Watson and Brissett are both getting first-team reps at training camp, but as the franchise hears more information pertaining to Watson’s status, the plan will change. As of Wednesday afternoon, there has not been a ruling, and Stefanski said, “I don’t have much to add,” pertaining to the quarterback’s situation. 

Twenty-five women filed civil lawsuits against Watson starting in March 2021, and only one dropped their case due to privacy concerns in April ’21. Watson, then, agreed to settle 20 of the 24 civil lawsuits in June ’22. The detailed graphic accounts of sexual harassment and sexual assault that occurred during massage therapy sessions range from Watson allegedly refusing to cover his genitals to the quarterback “touching [a plaintiff] with his penis and trying to force her to perform oral sex on him.”

The Cleveland quarterback has denied all allegations against him, and two Texas grand juries declined to indict him on criminal charges earlier this spring.

But, the accounts did not end there. The New York Times’ Jenny Vrentas reported in June that Watson booked appointments with at least 66 women over the span of 17 months for massage therapy sessions. The report also revealed that a Houston spa and the Texans “enabled” Watson’s massage habit, with the team supplying facilities and nondisclosure agreements.

Tony Buzbee, the lawyer for the plaintiffs, announced July 15 that all of the women who made or planned to make claims against the Texans organization over its role in the sexual misconduct allegations against Watson have resolved their claims. The move came after one of the women filed a lawsuit against the franchise June 27, stating the organization helped Watson arrange rooms at a Houston hotel under an alias. The filing also claimed the team knew about Watson’s sexual misconduct.