Deshaun Watson has maintained his innocence after 22 different women coming forward with sexual assault allegations, but the Houston Texans star has now admitted that his relationship with some of the massage therapists was not exactly professional.
Watson’s legal team held a press conference on Friday afternoon in which they enthusiastically defended the quarterback’s character. Rusty Hardin, Watson’s lead defense attorney, said there were times when Watson had “consensual encounters” with some of the alleged victims.
“We deeply, deeply do not believe this guy ever did anything nonconsensual with any woman during any of this,” Hardin said. “He didn’t coerce them. We don’t believe he used his position. We don’t believe he intimidated them. We simply do not. Were there sometimes consensual encounters? Yes.”
Some have questioned why Watson needed so many different massage therapists, and Hardin also addressed that. He attributed it to spas being shut down during the pandemic and Watson searching for therapists via direct messages because “millennials live on Instagram.”
The identities of at least a dozen women who have alleged sexual assault will soon be revealed. Nine of the reported victims have volunteered to publicly reveal their identities, and several others will have to due to a court ruling on Friday.
One of the reported victims, Ashley Solis, delivered a powerful statement this week in which she spoke about how Watson’s alleged misconduct has negatively affected her career and life. You can see that video here.
Watson’s defense is that he had consensual sexual encounters with some massage therapists and that all of the 22 women are lying in some form. Hardin previously claimed that Watson was the victim of a blackmail attempt in at least one of the case.
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