22 Questions for the Cleveland Browns Regarding Deshaun Watson
The Cleveland Browns have announced the trade for quarterback Deshaun Watson, making it official. The team has released statements from ownership, including Dee and Jimmy, general manager Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski.
At some point, they are going to have a press conference and answer questions about the acquisition of Watson. Even though any answers are unlikely to satisfy a significant portion of fans, media and critics, their approach in answering these questions is still important.
Whatever they are asked, the potential to spin, deflect, obfuscate, omit important details or outright lie will be there. Nevertheless, I have questions, some of which will never get answers, including a few that probably aren't fair.
1. How comfortable are you with the acquisition of Deshaun Watson being the move that defines not only your tenure with the Cleveland Browns, but your career in football?
2. What was your evaluation of Deshaun Watson as a person that would fit your smart, tough and accountable mantra?
3. How does the Browns standard differ from the legal standard?
4. What do you say to those who criticize the speed in which this occurred, not being charged by the grand jury to then being acquired in one week?
5. What does a guaranteed $230 million contract say about Deshaun Watson and your expectations of him both as a football player and a person?
6. What contingencies are in place should Deshaun Watson fall short of these expectations?
7. What went into the team's extensive investigation into Deshaun Watson and these allegations?
8. Based on that the team's extensive investigation, what do you know that we don't in regards to these allegations?
9. What's a reasonable explanation for one person to visit dozens of different massage therapists?
10. What does the team plan to do in regards to massage therapy and Watson so long as he is a part of the team?
11. How will Deshaun Watson not only attempt to build trust with this community, but prove he has come out of this a better person?
12. How does the team plan to repair any damage done by this move with the city of Cleveland and the fanbase?
13. Numerous fans have either renounced their fandom or cancelled season tickets among other forms of protest. Why are they wrong?
14. How does the team respond to criticisms that they are more concerned with winning football games than respecting women?
15. What efforts have been made to speak with any of the women who have alleged Watson engaged in criminal behavior?
16. What is your level of confidence that the civil suits will not produce criminal evidence?
17. Given the uniqueness of the situation, what efforts have been made in terms of determining how this move would be received by the locker room?
18. Was the first year of Watson's contract designed with the expectation that he will be suspended by the NFL during the 2022 season under the personal conduct policy?
19. What is the expectation for this team whether or not Watson is suspended?
20. How surprised have you been by the reactions from fans and critics both in pursuing Watson but then completing the trade?
21. Throughout this process, much has been made of the job of licensed massage therapists, often reducing women in particular who do these jobs. How do the Cleveland Browns view the field of massage therapy, its role with the Browns and those people who perform it?
22. What happens in the event something like this were to happen again?
These final two questions are a bonus. They simply cannot be asked, but are questions that I would love an honest answer. They undoubtedly feel combative, but they would provide some great insight into their thought process.
It's also not a green light for people to ask or heckle their family members of these men to ask them. The goal is to get a better understanding, get a truer sense of what went into the decision to acquire Watson, not simply heckle people or put them in a position where they feel threatened or put them in danger.
1. For Kevin and Andrew specifically, how was the idea of pursuing Deshaun Watson received by your wives?
2. You are both fathers with young children. How do you plan to explain them this situation when they are at an appropriate age to have the conversation?
