Who Do You Believe – the Star Football Player or 30 Massage Therapists?
Do you believe Deshaun Watson, the highly rated quarterback for two years at Clemson University, the consensus All-American that beat Alabama for a national championship, the former top-rated quarterback for the Houston Texans pro football team?
Or do you believe the 24 massage therapists that filed lawsuits against him because of alleged sexual behavior? And many other therapists that complained about his behavior but didn’t file suit because the judge required their names to be public? These women claimed that he made sexual advances toward them and in some cases forced them to do acts against their will during massage sessions.
It is documented that Deshaun Watson booked appointments with 66 different massage therapists over 18 months in Houston – all female. The Houston Texans football team provided the venue for many of these sessions. They also provided Non-Disclosure Agreements for the several of the therapists to sign, particularly after some complaints from the therapists. Meanwhile, 18 therapists said that Watson did not act inappropriately during their sessions.
Let’s do the math. That means that of the 66 therapists that worked on Watson, 24 sued him, and 18 said he was ok. That leaves 24 other therapists, many of whom complained to authorities and to the Houston Texans but didn’t want to sue publicly. The team recently settled with 30 women for an undisclosed amount of money, so it’s safe to say that at least 30 massage therapists directly accused him of sexual behavior during massages. Others may be constrained by the NDAs they signed.
Innocent or Not
Deshaun Watson claims that he has “always respected women” and has never forced anyone to do what they don’t want to do. He has denied all the accusations from the therapists. However, his lawyer has claimed that there WERE some sexual encounters with some therapists but that it was “consensual”. He has also stated that “happy endings” are common during massages, and “it’s not a crime”. Huh?! It’s hard to believe that a lawyer would know so little about the law! It seems like the lawyer and his client are providing mixed signals!
The question is – who do you believe? In our country, a person is considered innocent until proven guilty. Although Watson himself has now settled with 23 of the therapists who sued him, there is one therapist who has decided (so far) that it would be better to go to court rather than let him off the hook for a sizable monetary settlement, because of the emotional stress they endured. This case is expected to go to court in Spring of 2023.
Meanwhile, two grand juries in Texas decided NOT to press charges against Watson. Does this prove his innocence? We are talking about Texas, after all, where football is worshipped like the golden calf of Biblical times. I lived in Texas for 13 years, and I can say that this is no secret to anyone. Football players and coaches, especially the good ones, are treated like gods.
Although we don’t know why the grand juries didn’t indict Watson, we do know that the lawyer for the massage therapists accused the Houston Police department of not adequately investigating the accusations. We also know that Watson’s lawyer’s son is a policeman in the HPD. Does “inadequate investigation” mean he’s innocent? Sounds fishy.
Untouchable?
We also know that, although Watson was a successful football player in Houston, he was disgruntled, asked for a trade, and didn’t play at all in 2021. The Texans were anxious to let go of him AND his huge salary. They quickly reached out to 30 massage therapists and offered them large monetary settlements, even though only one of them had sued the Texans so far. There is no doubt that Houston wanted him out – fast. Did the grand juries in Texas assist this process by not pressing charges?
You might think that Deshaun Watson was untouchable at this point and that no team would want him and all his unethical and illegal baggage, right? Curiously, this was not the case. At least three teams were eager to get him, but it was the Cleveland Browns that ponied up and contracted to pay him a fully guaranteed $230 million over five years, the largest guaranteed contract of its kind in NFL history. Really?! Does that mean he’s innocent? The women of Cleveland (and some men) don’t think so. Many long-time Cleveland fans were stunned! Many now question their loyalty to the team.
This decision by the Cleveland Browns looks even more astonishing because the NFL was conducting an investigation of these accusations, and there was always the real possibility that the NFL could suspend him from playing for a year, more or less. Does that mean Cleveland would be paying him $46 million to do nothing, except get more massages? Nope. Knowing that a suspension without pay was imminent, they structured his contract such that he would get paid drastically less in the first year and significantly more in the succeeding years. Sneaky! What kind of human beings would do this in plain daylight and think it’s ok?
The Decision and the Appeal
Meanwhile, Sue Robinson, an arbitrator for the NFL and the player’s union, and who is a former judge, decided to mandate a 6-game suspension for Watson, saying that the NFL PROVED that Watson was guilty of predatory behavior, had sexually assaulted some of the massage therapists, and was a danger to the safety of other persons. She also noted that Watson expressed no remorse for his actions.
However, Robinson, a woman (!!), felt that the behavior was NOT violent and didn’t require a longer suspension. How is predatory sexual assault not violent behavior? This decision was mind-boggling!
Afterwards, the NFL decided to appeal the decision. They believe Watson should get at least a 12-game suspension if not the entire season, pay a large fine of at least $8 million, and get mandated psychological treatment. This is partially because of a huge backlash from football fans, the media, and just about everyone else (except the Cleveland Browns). It’s also because the integrity of the league is under question, and the NFL has been trying to get more women interested in the sport for years.
I Didn’t Mean to Hurt Anybody
Recently, Watson has come out and said that he DOES feel remorse for what he did and how it affected so many people. For many months, he denied the accusations and said he had no remorse about what happened. Now, he feels remorse? Could this be because he’s now facing yet another arbitrator decision on his career and income? Could it be because the Cleveland Browns have been pressuring him to at least show some remorse? None of this indicates innocence – that’s for sure.
Another independent arbitrator, Peter C. Harvey, a former state attorney general, was designated by the NFL to rule on the appeal. If Watson’s punishment is more severe, it’s possible that the player’s union will sue in federal court. This means that the final word may not come for quite awhile. The union could also go along with the decision, but it’s unlikely, because of the first arbitrator’s decision.
On August 18, 2022, the NFL and the player’s Union settled on 11 missed games without pay, $5M fine, and mandated treatment. Watson has to comply with evaluation and treatment recommendations of a third-party behavioral expert in order to be reinstated. If Watson doesn’t comply with the treatment plan, his reinstatement could be delayed and he could receive further discipline.
This is more of a consequence than the first arbitrator’s decision. But Watson is STILL not acknowledging what all those therapists’ have accused him of. He is still NOT taking responsibility for his actions.
The Reality
What does this story tell you about how women – and massage therapists – are looked upon by many in this country? Thankfully, we know that the Deshaun Watsons of the world do not represent the majority of clients that request massage therapy. Because of decades of work by massage pioneers and organizations, most LMTs do not have to deal with this type of sexualization of the massage session.
We also know that such brazen, demeaning behavior is still out there. Many therapists still experience it – primarily female therapists, though some males have dealt with it, too. In my Ethics class, we discuss ways of dealing with this, and there are many resources available to help therapists prevent such experiences or deal with them after the fact.
Such behavior is a crime. But it’s not always easy to make these people accountable. It’s not always easy to get law enforcement to investigate seriously. Meanwhile, therapists have to keep working to pay the bills. They’re trying to help people with their back pain and their headaches. But they’re often left with deep emotional scars from such terrible experiences.
Massage the Profession
The massage therapy profession is amazing! Professional therapists help people every day! Clients come into the office and therapists are able to help them feel way better than they did before! Massage is being recognized as a healthcare modality more and more each year! The research on the benefits of massage for physical and mental-emotional dysfunctions is massive! (See https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ and search for massage)
Massage therapists have a lot to be proud of in their work. Every one of them has clients that are enormously grateful because of what they do. Every day! We don’t need rotten apples to spoil the basket. I sincerely hope that no massage therapist has to deal with the type of behavior that Deshaun Watson is accused of. And if they are, I hope they’re able to get help processing that experience. Such an experience does not define you – as a person – or as a therapist. Right?
What are your thoughts?
I’ll put some references for this article below, if you want to read about it further.
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Stay well, John
John Joseph Ray
Ray of Light Training
References:
– https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deshaun_Watson
– https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/21/sports/football/deshaun-watson-settlements.html
– https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/09/sports/football/deshaun-watson-browns.html?searchResultPosition=2
– https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/34281031/cleveland-browns-qb-deshaun-watson-reports-training-camp-ahead-ruling
– https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/15/sports/football/deshaun-watson-settlement-texans.html?searchResultPosition=1
– https://www.foxnews.com/sports/attorney-browns-deshaun-watson-happy-endings-crime-clarifies-remarks
– https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2022/08/08/nflpa-backs-off-notion-of-an-injunction-that-would-let-deshaun-watson-play-in-week-one/
– https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/34342566/nfl-appealing-deshaun-watson-six-game-suspension
– https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/03/sports/football/nfl-appeals-deshaun-watsons-suspension.html
– https://www.nytimes.com/2022/08/01/sports/football/deshaun-watson-nfl-suspension.html
– https://www.si.com/nfl/browns/news/deshaun-watson-contract-details