The most anticipated NFL news of the offseason came down Monday morning as Judge Sue L. Robinson ruled Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson had violated the league’s Personal Conduct Policy and suspended him for the first six games of the season. ESPN Cleveland and 92.3 The Fan, the co-flagship stations of the Browns Radio Network, covered the news extensively.
“Let’s go, baby,” ESPN Cleveland’s Chris Oldach said. “All offseason it (Watson’s possible suspension length) has been ‘four games, a year, indefinite’ and I got so exhausted by it. Finally, we have the answer. Six games.”
“The ball is in the court of the NFL,” Tony Rizzo of The Really Big Show added. “Whether or not the league is going to appeal, whether or not they think six games is fair. Whether or not they think six games is fair to their PR reputation because now this becomes ‘is it enough?’. They pushed for a year. Will that be enough for them? To say that they pushed for a year? I’ve gotta believe both sides went with Judge Sue L. Robinson. Both sides agreed that she would make the decision.
“What a bad look it would be, now, if the NFL comes out and appeals this ruling. Because why did you agree to have this judge rule in the first place? As a Browns fan, I’m a little worried about that, but I think they (the NFL) might have to live with this. The PA (NFL Players Association) had come out last night and said no matter what the ruling they would not appeal. I think they had a little inkling it was going to be the four to six games we reported a few weeks ago.”
“I think it’s a win,” Browns reporter Tony Grossi told Rizzo. “I think it’s a win for Watson, I think it’s a win for the Browns, and Riz, I don’t think the NFL is going to mess with appealing it. I agree with you. I think it’s a bad look. I think it was an ingenious proactive strike by the NFLPA with their statement. They obviously had an inkling that they were going to ‘win’ this whole thing, and even though he is suspended six games I think they (the Browns, Watson, and the NFLPA) have to be happy with it.”
Meanwhile, at 92.3 The Fan, The Ken Carman Show with Anthony Lima tried to straddle the line between recognizing the repercussions both off the field and on the field.
“I think that’s a win for Deshaun Watson,” 92.3 The Fan’s Browns Reporter Daryl Ruiter told the duo. “And to a football perspective, the Cleveland Browns.”
“I’m trying to be sensitive to all parties involved, I am,” Carman replied. “But I’m a fan of the team, I can’t deny that. I’m looking at this with a great sense of relief. There were people saying this (signing Watson) wasn’t worth the investment. There were people who went after the Browns for that. I never felt that way. Six games? I can look you dead in the eye and tell you this team is making the playoffs if he’s suspended for six games.”
“It was very scary to hear ‘indefinite, having to apply for reinstatement, a full season’ the NFL was hungry for,” Lima said.
“From the NFL’s perspective they, at least publicly, wanted to come across as ‘we take these allegations that were made in civil court against Deshaun Watson very, very seriously. We felt that they were egregious enough in that his actions violated, whatever those actions were, violated the NFL’s Conduct Policy in such a manner that it requires him to not be allowed to play this coming season’. That becomes a very positive PR ploy from the NFL’s standpoint. Because they’re putting it out there that they’re being really, really tough on him,” Ruiter added.
“Six games, to me, with everything we’ve read — and gosh I’ve read more this summer than I’ve done since I was in high school, even college — seems reasonable,” Carman said. “I’m sure there’s going to be national pundits who are very, very upset with it. I’m sure, because that’s the way it operates, but you’ve gone through this system. You’re basing this on fairness, and that’s what it is.”
