NFL Closes Investigation On Deshaun Watson’s Most Recent Lawsuit

According to Mary Kay Cabot, the NFL has closed its investigation of Deshaun Watson‘s most recent allegation of sexual assault in September.

Cabot writes the NFL found “insufficient evidence” to justify Watson breaking the league’s personal conduct policy. 

This doesn’t come as much of a surprise after Watson reached a settlement with his accuser back in October. 

Watson was named in the lawsuit by a woman who says the quarterback sexually assaulted her on a date in 2020. The details in the lawsuit mirrored the two dozen complaints of sexual misconduct from various massage therapists that resulted in an 11-game suspension for Watson in 2022. 

If Watson was suspended again, the Browns could’ve voided the remaining guaranteed money in his fully-guaranteed contract, giving them an escape hatch where one didn’t exist previously. 

Watson, 29, was taken in the first round of the 2017 NFL draft out of Clemson by the Texans. He signed a four-year, $13.854 million rookie deal with the Texans that included a fifth-year option of around $17.3 million for the 2021 season.

The Texans later signed Watson to a four-year extension worth as much as $177 million heading into the 2020 season, paying him $39 million a year. However, Watson requested a trade after the season, then sat out the entire 2021 season while navigating more than two dozen lawsuits for sexual misconduct. He was later suspended for 11 games. 

Watson was traded to the Browns for significant draft compensation in 2022 and signed a five-year, $230 million, fully guaranteed contract as a part of the trade. The deal runs through 2026 and includes base salaries of $46 million in each of the final two seasons. 

In 2024, Watson appeared in seven games for the Browns and completed 63.4 percent of his pass attempts for 1,148 yards, five touchdowns, and three interceptions. He added 31 carries for 148 yards and another score.