The NFL is officially appealing the recently announced Deshaun Watson suspension, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets. The league had until 8am CT Thursday to file an appeal.
Disciplinary officer Sue Robinson suspended the Browns quarterback for six games, a number that came in well short of what the NFL hoped. Weeks ago, cleveland.com’s Mary Kay Cabot reported the NFL would not sit by if a six- or eight-game ban came down. This long-rumored action will put the union to the test. The NFLPA said it would not appeal Robinson’s initial decision, but now that the NFL has launched its effort, the ball is in the union’s court.
The NFLPA has two days to respond to this move. With Roger Goodell or a Goodell appointee overseeing the appeal — the setup the league and the union agreed to when the parties hammered out the current CBA in March 2020 — the union would not seem to have much hope of keeping this suspension at six games. A move to shift this matter to the courts surfaced during Robinson’s deliberation. It is unclear if the NFLPA will try another court measure, after Tom Brady and Ezekiel Elliott ended up serving their suspensions despite lengthy legal sagas, but it would surprise if the union stood pat if this appeal leads to an increased Watson penalty.
This offseason’s defining story doubled as the first usage of the independent arbitrator for a personal conduct policy violation. While the NFL risks further damaging its relationship with the NFLPA by attempting to change Robinson’s decision, this is the policy the union approved — albeit by a narrow vote — when the CBA was ratified. Barring the union earning a surprise victory in court, Goodell’s decision will stand.
This news will certainly affect the Browns’ prospects for a successful 2022 season. The team has faced waves of criticism for authorizing the fully guaranteed $230MM contract — a measure that convinced Watson to choose Cleveland over NFC South suitors — after 22 women had sued the Pro Bowl quarterback alleging sexual assault and/or sexual misconduct during massage therapy sessions. Two more women filed suit after Watson joined the Browns, who were not expecting a full-season suspension when they sent the Texans a trade package of three first-round picks and change. Monday, then, represented a positive development for the team. Wednesday’s news does not.
It has not been a secret the NFL wants Watson off the field in 2022. The league argued for such a ban during the June hearing. In her report, Robinson concluded Watson committed sexual assault and described the 26-year-old’s pattern of nonviolent sexual conduct as “more egregious than any before reviewed by the NFL.” The sexual assault being deemed nonviolent helped induce Robinson to settle on six games, but the language she used when describing her conclusion undoubtedly opened the door for the league to act.
More to come.
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