Watson focuses on football, deflects other queries

BEREA, Ohio -- In Deshaun Watson's archetypal interrogation successful astir 4 months, the Cleveland Browns backmost refused to reply immoderate non-football questions.

"I recognize that you guys person a batch of questions," Watson said Thursday. "But with my ineligible squad and my objective team, there's lone shot questions I tin truly code astatine this time."

Watson conscionable finished serving an 11-game suspension for violating the league's idiosyncratic behaviour argumentation by committing intersexual assault, arsenic defined by the NFL, connected massage therapists.

He has been accused by much than 2 twelve women of intersexual battle and different intersexual misconduct during massage sessions.

Two civilian lawsuits stay outstanding, including 1 filed connected Oct. 13. Earlier this year, Watson settled 23 of the different lawsuits that had been filed against him.

As portion of a colony betwixt the NFL and the NFLPA, Watson besides had to wage a $5 cardinal good and acquisition a mandatory attraction program.

"I was conscionable trying immoderate I could bash to play shot successful 2022," helium said erstwhile asked wherefore helium agreed to the 11-game suspension. "Most of the colony worldly with the NFL was mostly my bureau and ineligible team. I had nary control. My main absorption was doing everything I needed to bash to play this year."

Two expansive juries successful Texas declined to prosecute transgression charges against Watson earlier this year.

In his past erstwhile interview, successful August, Watson again denied immoderate wrongdoing and said radical hadn't been funny successful proceeding his broadside of the story. When asked Thursday whether he's inactive funny successful telling his communicative astatine immoderate point, Watson said, "who knows what the aboriginal holds."

Watson besides declined to accidental what, if anything, helium had learned from the league-mandated counseling.

"That's much successful that signifier of objective and ineligible stuff," helium said. "I've been advised to enactment distant from that and support that personal. ... I'm focusing connected football. That's my main absorption is shot and preparing to beryllium the starting backmost for the Cleveland Browns truthful I tin execute the crippled program to effort to get a triumph this Sunday."

Watson's instrumentality against his erstwhile team, the Houston Texans, volition people precisely 700 days since helium past played successful a regular-season crippled (with the Texans connected Jan. 3, 2021).

The Browns traded for Watson successful March, sending the Texans 3 first-round draught picks. Cleveland past signed Watson to a five-year woody worthy $230 cardinal guaranteed, the richest declaration successful NFL history.

Earlier this week, Houston lawyer Tony Buzbee, who represented 25 of the women who filed lawsuits against Watson, said astir 10 of his clients were readying to be Sunday's crippled with him.

"They thought it important to marque wide that they are inactive present and that they matter," Buzbee said.

Watson said he's "not worried" astir the ambiance helium volition brushwood successful Houston.

"Like I said, I'm focusing connected conscionable being the starting backmost and executing the crippled plan," helium said. "That's my main focus."