going on if you haven't noticed and I shape a lot of what
I decide to talk about based upon questions I get and of course
I get a bunch of questions about DeShaun Watson, what is going
on? Well
nothing right now because the league in the union
we're putting together. Paperwork is going to be
submitted by next Monday July the 11th and both sides will
presumably
submit their paper work simultaneously
So the other side doesn't get a chance to react to what
the other side had to say,
that's when the clock ticks on Judge, Robinson to come up with
a decision. I still think it's going to take two weeks,
anything less than a week or so makes it look like she rushed
it. I think two weeks makes sense. So I 25 is when I'm
really going to start paying attention with the possibility
of July 22 that Friday before hand,
but just about the time we come back on PFT live peacock,
SiriusXM 85 etcetera.
that maybe when the window opens
for a decision, which Shone Watson has been a lot of talk
about settlement to, I wrote about this late, last night, /
early this morning,
and,
I think it does make sense. That always makes sense for two
sides or in any type of a legal proceeding to come to
a decision. If they can, it's better
to engineer the outcome and have both sides a little bit upset
than roll the dice.
And ensure that one side is going to be
really upset and the other side is going to be really happy.
It's just part of managing, the outcome and coming up with
something that works for everyone
in theory, that makes sense. Here's the problem
fundamental challenge for the NFL It cannot afford to be
perceived as being lenient in any way on DeShaun Watson and
when the league is repeatedly, making it known that it's
seeking a minimum suspension of one year for Deshaun Watson.
How do you back off on that
without appearing, weak without appearing in effective without
appearing too lenient with someone? Who the league
believes did enough to justify a full year suspension? Why are
you giving
Hang up. Now why are you folding tents and accepting
a six or an eight game suspension that to me is difficult to
accomplish until judge Robinson issues a decision?
Because
her decision
In a certain way, sanitizes the leaks position on this because
she's the one true Outsider
who comes to the conclusion
as to what happened here. That's why I've said time and
again it's critical that whatever she puts on paper,
makes sense is understandable. No jargon legalese mumbo-jumbo
something. That is simple
that people will say, okay, I get it. I may not agree with
their outcome, but I understand how she got from the entry to
the Met Maze to the exit of the maze
by doing that, it makes it easier for the NFL to say, for
example. Okay, she suspends and I'm just throwing
numbers out here for games. She spends in four games,
Then the league since it has the hammer on appium.
And the commissioner, can in theory the way the CBA is
written,
the way, the personal conduct policy has been revised in 2020,
he can take that for and turn it into 17. If you wants to,
that's when I think a negotiated outcome becomes more
practical, it becomes more likely, it becomes more
feasible.
Because that's when the league can say, look, she set
the floor.
And we know what the ceiling is. We'll just try to reach
something in between
and I still think back to
that idea that kind of popped up a week or two ago of
treating 2021
like an unpaid suspension. After the fact, after give up
to 10 million dollars you made in salary last year for not
playing and
I understand it, we're in an age where people just lock into
a position and just shout it, regardless of reality
regardless of whether Make sense.
And I'll hear all the time. All he chose not to play. He, he
wasn't on, paid leave you look.
Let's take a step back. Let's all take a step back and ask
ourselves,
without this off-field issue
in twenty, twenty one,
twenty two, lawsuits at the time,
10 criminal complaints, without those
entanglements.
He plays last year, doesn't he? He gets traded last year?
The Texans don't dig in and wait
as the season unfolds,
they get a deal done.
Somebody would have wanted him. Somebody would have said, let's
go do this.
The trade would have happened, would been a dolphin without
the,
the off-field issues period by the trade deadline. He would
have been a dolphin, so he would have played last year.
So,
and I know that look like, with any other issue that we deal
with. In these times, there are two sides
with a huge gap in the middle, and it's very difficult to find
Middle Ground. There are the people who say you shouldn't be
suspended at all. he didn't do anything, there's no proof
and then there's people who say
suspend him for life
or at least a full season,
so,
The NFL has to make its decisions in light of the fact
that you've got these two polar extremes. And I think waiting
for judge Robinson to make her decision, makes it easier for
the NFL to then try to settle it. But but remember, the NFL
has
got the hammer at that point. As long as she imposes, any
discipline on him whatsoever, the NFL has the hammer,
the commissioner
on a peel, can enhance it to whatever he wants. He's only
limited by her factual findings he would have to take her
factual findings
and say Okay I accept these Have no choice but to accept
them. But I think under these facts the way the personal
conduct policy applies to these facts,
the punishment should be much more
than what someone who is a federal judge for 25 years
had concluded but he still has the power to do it. And in
theory there's nothing the union can do after that under
the CBA. I know they can go to court. Again,
judges don't like to get involved
when private parties have put together a comprehensive system
for resolving their differences. So we continue to
wait, we continue to watch a settlement.
It could happen at any time, I just think it would be a very
tough sell for the league.
To explain to people why after insisting on a minimum
suspension of one year, the league decided. OK, we'll do
six games for games, eight games, whatever.
It's going to be tough to do,
even if you make
2021 a de facto
after the fact suspension is going to be tough to do. And
from Watson's perspective, somebody pointed this out to me
today. Hey, there's going to be all sorts of awkward and
embarrassing facts that come out. If judge Robinson issues
are written decision,
how's it any? Worse than what's already?
Come out. Like, I don't think from Watson's perspective, part
of the Leverage is against him. Oh, hey, if you don't settle
this, there's going to be a lot of stuff.
It's gonna be, they're gonna say a lot of stuff. They
already are saying a lot of stuff about him,
how worse can it get
so?
I think that.
The league knows it has to wait and the risk. The league takes
is that judge Robinson will impose no discipline
whatsoever. And then that slams, the door
on anything that the league could do on appeal. And he's
back week one. Although
we've talked about it before, I don't want to spend too much
time or much more time than already have on this.
I think it's tough to get no discipline at all, but we'll
see. We'll see. It's going to be a fascinating read.
I assume, since it doesn't involve an owner,
they will be full transparency. Since it involves a player,
the league will release the full document for all to
observe.