Recently, the Cleveland Browns offered a historic $230million to acquire Deshaun Watson, a well-known talent as a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). However, that impressive sum of money fails to capture a critical component in this significant moment for the Browns and the NFL. What exactly is that missing piece? The quarterback in question Deshaun Watson has numerous outstanding allegations of sexual misconduct against him, facing 22 active civil suits accusing him of sexual assault and misconduct.

We at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation are gravely concerned with this decision from the Browns and Deshaun Watson, as well as the NFL’s larger pattern of tolerance for exploitation within and across its ranks.

Watson’s Trade Inadvertently Minimizes Survivor Voices

Watson’s trade to the Cleveland Browns is being touted as historic due to the contract guaranteeing him more money and more years than to any player in the history of the NFL. However, never in history has such a contract been extended to an individual with such a highly questionable track record of sexual misconduct.

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