Destroy think it's over.
We get a curveball thrown right in our heads by
Browns, quarterback, DeShaun Watson. It was a crazy couple
of hours yesterday as the word, first started to surface and
Miles Simmons, sent on the PFT text chain that the Browns had
delayed, their media availability for Thursday, that's what
got me to start poking around seeing where I can find out. I
Quickly learned there would be news
the league. Inadvertently posted at their Communications
media website,
the draft
of the statement, announcing the 11 game suspension and
the five million dollar, fine and Miles Simmons. And I spent
a lot of time yesterday breaking down some of the more obvious
angles
Shireen, but the thing that really sent this off the rails
and could potentially be a problem for Deshaun Watson.
The comments.
I don't know why. The Browns rushed him to a microphone
yesterday.
Why did they do anything?
Just give it a day.
Just rest on the written statements
for a day. And let's see how the world reacts to it and then
maybe
on Friday, if we need to, if we need to,
we make people available. If we don't
Don't say a thing.
Sometimes. The best PR is no PR,
just let it go.
Let it marinate.
Let it ruminate.
Let it just be,
they had to,
I don't get it. And I suspect, there are some folks in
Cleveland today, within the Browns facility.
Wondering why they did what they did including giving
DeShaun Watson a chance to stand up their claim. His
innocence, did they not know? That's what he was going to do.
Did they not realize from his private Communications
that he's still proclaimed? His innocence?
That's the thing that
obviously we need to talk about. We need to understand
what it means going forward. But that's the biggest thing
that stands out from yesterday's developments for
me.
And with that, I say welcome
to everyone out there watching the show and how much read
William. She'll be with me for the next two hours.
I am, I missing something. Wasn't that the most
Obvious kind of head-scratcher that we saw yesterday. When we
finally thought we had finality,
DeShaun, Watson has prevented us from
truly believing. This is final.
Well and I agree Mike. That is what stood out for me as well
because Roger Goodell put out the statement, right? If you go
back to Jerry Rice,
I'm sorry, Ray Rice back in the day, they announced
the suspension and then the video came out and it basically made
the commissioner and the NFL, look foolish, whatever word you
want to use. It didn't work out for the NFL very well, the pr
was a disaster and I thought this could
Kind of followed that in that way
because the commissioner put out
Roger Goodell said you know DeShaun trying to do all
the right things etc. Etc to turn it around
and then he comes back and proclaims his innocence. No,
I never said that I was did anything wrong. I was more
talking about
apologizing for being in this situation so it's just it was
bad PR. I don't know. You're right. Mike, if you don't say
anything at all, sometimes that's better
than saying what was said
in this situation and I don't know why they didn't either.
Hold off on it. They knew it was coming. Right? They knew
this was coming for weeks. Why not have a media session and
have him practice
and get together and know what you're going to say?
And I don't think that's what they wanted him to say. If it
is they totally botched. This thing if that's really what
they wanted to Sean Watson to say they botched this whole
deal but it sound like he just And what he wanted to say
and got it out there. But either way, it was bad, it was
a bad look. It was a bad look, for the NFL is a bad look for
the Browns. It was a bad look for Deshaun Watson, and that's
kind of how this thing has gone from the start. What are we in
a year and a half into this now?
And that's kind of what it's been this whole time
and you make a great point. They didn't know this was coming,
I heard from plenty of people
after
the word broke of an 11 game suspension with a 5 million
dollar fine that well I knew about This yesterday and
I always love hearing that after
something is finally reported, why didn't you say something
about it yesterday? If you knew about it yesterday, but clearly
something was in the works and when they delayed the media
availability at a minimum, they had some
inkling, some understanding some realization
that this was going to occur,
so it wasn't just slapped together.
There was an element of
strategy that went into this. Hey, we're going to delay
the media availability. And when it happens, we will. Have to
Charles watts and we will have general manager. Andrew Berry,
we will have D and Jimmy Haslam,
say whatever they're going to say, and we'll get to them.
We're getting there. Not blameless in this either by any
stretch. No. But I just wonder did they know, did the Browns
know?
When the time came for Deshaun Watson to speak,
he was going to depart so dramatically
from what he said last Friday. And from what he said in his
statement, let's look at this statement. That was issued at
the time that the 11 game suspension and five million
dollar, fine as negotiated between league and Union became
official,
I'm grateful that this player process has ended and extremely
appreciative of the tremendous support. I received throughout
my short time with the browser organization. I apologize. Once
again,
Reiterating
what he said on Friday incorporating by references.
The lawyers would say I apologize. Once again for any
pain, this situation is cause I take accountability
for the decisions I made.
I take accountability
for the decisions. I made my focus going forward is on
working to become the best version of myself on and off
the field. Supporting my teammates. However possible
while I'm away
from the team. And I'm excited about what the future holds for
me and Cleveland. Okay, fine, that's fine.
Leave it at that.
Don't say anything. More,
for God's sake, don't let him get a microphone and say
I Proclaim my innocence. Oh, here he is.
I've always stood on my innocence and always said that
I've never assaulted anyone or disrespecting anyone and I'm
continuing to stand on that, but at the same time, I have to
continue to push forward with my life and my career
and for us to be able to move forward. You know, I have to be
able to take steps in Pitt Pride to the side and I'm gonna
continue to stand on my innocence and, and keep pushing
forward. And
I've always, you know, stood on not disrespecting or sexual,
assaulting anyone
for everyone that was affected about the situation. There was
A lot of people that was triggered, but not the women
that accused you of this,
I've apologized to all women so anybody that was affected even
yourself.
Everything. So I'm apologizing to everyone that was affected
about this whole situation. You're gonna take a lot of heat
for I stand on my innocence and
well, I have to do what's best for the show Watson at the end
of the day and I know what happened. I was in those
situations but I have to continue to push forward
and keep moving forward.
I really would love to know
if they knew
that, that's what he was going to say. When he had a chance to
speak to the media because clearly, they have an interest
in having this,
and in a way where everyone can move forward, the Browns aren't
trying to make him look bad, the Browns aren't trying to
force him to take a reckoning, the refuses to take and based
upon his words,
he refuses to take it.
Everyone's entitled to a second chance. That's what Jimmy has
him said. Yesterday we're going to hear from him. Yup. But you
have to earn the Second Chance
by truly seeking Reckoning,
that flows from the squandering of your first chance. That's
the weird part of this.
You have to say,
and what is does, he truly believe he's innocent after all
of this and that's going to be very relevant to the
evaluation and treatment angle
that the NFL could use to slam the door in his face.
That's the one thing
that keeps Oops, this from truly being over if the NFL
is sufficiently alarmed,
as it should be by the Shah Watson's ongoing proclamation
of Innocence how in the world does evaluation and treatment
work
you go in to be evaluated
and your whole attitude is why am I here? I don't need to be
here. I didn't do anything wrong. You're getting
treatment. What am I getting treatment for? I didn't do
anything wrong. I stand on my innocence. A lot of people were
triggered. Are you? One of them
person who is evaluating and treating me? Are you triggered to?
I don't know why the hell I keep using that word.
It is so inherently, derisive it diminishes, the concerns of
the people who are triggered, like the something wrong with
you. Not me because you got triggered by what happened.
The hope
I know the NFL would love for this to be over and that's
probably one of the reasons why the NFL agreed to
the settlement, it ain't over,
it isn't over. And this is one of those where you need to
sleep on it and see how it feels in the light of day. It
feels worse to me this morning than it did as the events were
happening.
Happening yesterday.
Can you imagine my
Roger Goodell watching that press conference
last yesterday? I can't imagine the words that came out of his
mouth as he's watching that press conference. Can you
imagine the haslums and Kevin stefanski watching that press
conference yesterday? I can't imagine the words coming out of
their mouths yesterday.
I would suspect that they were stunned by the words. That
DeShaun Watson used. I was stunned. I was driving back in
my car from Houston and listening on. Serious. And
I just couldn't believe what I was hearing
from Deshaun Watson. After all this, that's what we're left
with and you're right.
It would be kind of over if he hadn't said what he said, if we
hadn't
had the press conference, if he had
gone up there and stuck to what the statement said, did he even
read the statement before he went up there? That's what
I would like to know that too. Like, whoever wrote this
statement for him because, you know,
No, he didn't write that statement
but whoever wrote it form. Did he actually read it before he
got up there? And said what? He said, I suspect that he didn't
Mike, I suspect he had no idea what was in that statement
and he was going to make his talking points and say what he
wanted to say and he did and and now everyone comes out
looking even were if that was even possible, I would have
said that wasn't even possible.
But after this, I would say everyone in this situation came
out, looking even worse this morning, then What they look
like before the announcement yesterday? I mean this is
really puts everything in a bad light that settlement, the NFL,
the
Browns, the owners of the Browns DeShaun Watson. I didn't
think any of them could look worse than what they looked
before. This after that. Oh my gosh. That
that was not good.