Just it was odd to
me because earlier this week he issued a statement saying,
I have nothing to say about the NFL's process because that's
irrelevant to me. Well, then the next day,
he calls a press conference for Thursday where he's going to
talk about the NFL's process. So let's hear a little bit from
Tony Busby yesterday and we will react to it. As they say,
on the other side,
it is a given that the NFL's disciplinary process is
a juggled miss.
It has been sewing. Consistent in the past that it's hard to
take it seriously.
And worse yet, everyone knows that the NFL's record on
women's issues is sketchy
and sad.
At best, it could be described as inconsistently dismal.
Nevertheless, our clients believed that with a new
process in place with new people involved.
Things might be different.
Unfortunately, we were wrong
some of the interviews spent most of the time on a deep dive
of the victim
and little to no questions about the conduct that was
being alleged.
In some cases, it was our view that when the questioners
weren't being aggressive and hostile,
they really weren't that interested in what was being
said or what it actually happened.
Many of our clients left, those interviews thinking that they
had not been heard.
kind of strange to see a guy who speaks extemporaneously all
the time reading from notes but that's a different point
altogether
Tony Busby I don't know what he's trying to do here because
He raises concerns about the way, the NFL handled,
the investigation raises concerns about the manner in which his
clients
were questioned, they were being interrogated. They were
asked what were you wearing for these massage sessions? They
were, they felt like, they weren't being properly
respected. He said that 10 of his clients were interviewed by
the NFL. He offered to make
more available.
The NFL didn't take him up on that now. I think there's like
the NFL would go on the record with a response. I don't like
her trafficking in off-the-record. Just to this
kind of on the record allegation. I've seen some
reporting
and I've heard some things
off the Record and again, it makes me uncomfortable to pass
those along because they should just issue a statement. If they
have a disagreement with Tony Busby they should just say so
yes. But he loses sight of the fact that
the process gave the NFL
The road map to get to where the NFL wants to be,
right? He actually can't. If I was trying to brush this under
the rug and not punish DeShaun Watson. They want him out for
the whole season. Yeah, he may disagree about how they're
going about it. How they went about interviewing these
individuals, and why they didn't call any of
his clients to testify at the hearing.
But the league has in hand findings of fact from Judge
Robinson that he did it that he committed nonviolent sexual
assault.
It's odd to see him complaining
about a process that is on course Give him
what he apparently wants,
right? Not, not only is the process on course, give him
what he wants. It's also not over, you know, so I am
a little puzzled, I guess by their action and II feel
terrible,
that any victim of sexual assault. Someone that is claiming
to have been sexually. Assaulted does not feel hurt
and I don't like hearing that. But at the same time right now
look at what the NFL has done in the process. Thus far,
the NFL got to a place where it has concluded the independent
in all arbitrator. If you will from that is appointed by
the nflpa in the NFL concluded that DeShaun Watson was guilty,
right? And so now, the NFL has appealed
the six game suspension and we could see the increase in
the suspension. We can see an increase in find, we could see
an increase in what he has to do to receive treatment. So
the process is not
over. But the NFL's finding effect as you said, Mike is
already concluded that he did what he was accused of. So
I think to say that the NFL is not taking this seriously,
I just don't see that
as what has gone on so far.
And the obvious goal I believe is to put pressure on the NFL
what to follow through on what it seems to intend to do.
But in so doing its contributing to this cloud of
misinformation, that is out there about what the process
is, what it is and what has happened, what hasn't happened,
because anybody, who would
listen that press conference yesterday,
I would think he didn't get suspended at all.
Well, I would think, the NFL is just
kind of checking boxes and getting through this because it
It's to move on with football. The NFL is the one that is
trying to rectify, what it believes was, a miscarriage of
Justice in the sixth game. Suspension, that was levied by
judge Robinson, so it just seems strange to me
and I would like to see why. And
it was reported, I believe at the time of the hearing,
why, when you have 10 people
that spoke to NFL investigators, first of all,
why didn't they talk to all of them?
I'd love to know that on the record, not off the Record
chatter about whatever May. Have led to those interviews
not happening.
I want to know why on the record. You didn't talk to all
of the individuals who had claims against DeShaun Watson,
and I want to know why you focused on for when it was time
to actually present the evidence
to judge Robinson and what was reported, sometimes there's
the idea that before was before I was 5, he reportedly? Yeah,
right. Yes, the fifth was an anonymous person, who spoke to
Jenny Ventus, who declined to be interviewed by the NFL
and judge Robinson rightly said
that's not evidence.
What. But as to the for, how do we get from 10
to 4?
Did the NFL just decide as I think? Someone suggested at
the time this was happening to just focus on the strongest claims.
The ones that had corroboration via contemporaneous text
messages Etc
but
if there's 10
and you're just setting aside 6 and if there's 14 more and
you're not even counting them into that, I would like to
think that the sheer volume
of people who are complaining about what DeShaun Watson did
would have relevance if at the end of the day
now, and look at it this way,
judge Robinson found
that the investigators who testified at the hearing were
credible and the 215 page report from the NFL was
credible.
Why do you only focus on
For
if you can say, look, there's 24
wouldn't the punishment, be a hell of a lot more and that's
the one fact that we all need to keep in mind even though
the case focused on four.
Everybody knows it was 24.
And why would anyone think that the evidence would be any
different as together 20, you know? If some of them are
telling the truth, he's saying that some of them are just
making it up
if it's 24 and it's a consistent pattern and they all
came forward and they all got settlements.
That's one of those things that when Peter Harvey makes his
decision or when a judge is weighing us. If it goes to
court, that person's going to be aware that there were 24
that's unavoidable. But
it is odd to me miles that the NFL
Focused on four when there were so many others out there, that
would have, made the case stronger, just by the sheer
volume of complaints against DeShaun Watson,
right? In that, I agree with you. Mike and I feel like
that's something that I would really like to know exactly
what how the NFL got to wear it God with just focusing on four
cases. I mean, we know why it went down from 5 to 4
at the hearing, but we don't know why it went down from, you
know, 11:36 to 10 and then 25 and then, you know, down to
four as well. So, So there are, I think a lot of questions that
the NFL could answer
by delving into exactly what it's process was throughout
the course of this. And I think for the sake of transparency and
perhaps, you know, giving the public a greater understanding
of what it was that the NFL was looking at
the all the benefit from the NFL sharing, what that process
was, you know? I mean it's the same thing that we've been kind
of trying to talk about what Daniel Snyder. How did you get
to this
conclusion? Vision, right. How did you get here? Where you
know, we're saying that this should be the punishment for
Daniel Center. How did we get
here? So that this is where the NFL is saying. Yes, we're
pushing for year-long suspension
of DeShaun Watson. Now I feel like we would all benefit from
that a greater understanding of why
and the how, you know, and we don't really have those things
yet
and I really do think that the explanation would be if they
would. Give us one
that they just wanted to focus on
the strongest
cases that they had. And they didn't want to dilute The
credibility of the four by introducing
more than that. But
if
I guess, if I was Judge Robinson and the investigators
are the ones who testify and not the individuals and
was we said, his people weren't even invited to participate and
I presume that they would have accepted the invitation
if they would have been.
Invited. I would want to ask that question
the investigators. Before I decide how credible their explanation
is like why didn't you bring in
These other six, did you have concerns about their
credibility?
Did you did you think that they were may be
exaggerating embellishing fabricating? Would that affect
your view of these other four individuals? I mean, is it just
because they happen to send a text message after they walked
out of the room?
Is that the thing that made these believable? When these
aren't I? I would be curious about all of those things. If
I was Judge Robinson or anyone else and
I don't know, maybe we'll try to get to the bottom of that.