Watson faces 22 active civil lawsuits accusing of him sexual misconduct and sexual assault in various massage appointments. Today we will discuss about Deshaun watson: Exempt list| Can play| Can play in 2021
Deshaun watson: Exempt list| Can play| Can play in 2021
Derrick Deshan Watson (born September 14, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Clemson, where he led the team to a national championship win in 2016. Watson was selected by the Texans in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
| No. 4 – Houston Texans | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Quarterback |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | September 14, 1995 Gainesville, Georgia |
| Height: | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) |
| Weight: | 215 lb (98 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Gainesville |
| College: | Clemson (2014–2016) |
| NFL Draft: | 2017 / Round: 1 / Pick: 12 |
Exempt list
According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the NFL has not placed Watson on the commissioner’s exemption list because he has not had to.
According to a source with knowledge of the situation, the league has not made a decision about Watson as it is not required to make a decision about Watson. With Texans content to pay him to play and Watson material to play with and pay for it, there is no reason for the NFL to do anything about it. He is already on paid leave.
It’s understandable to an extent, but it could mess things up if Watson is traded and the team receiving him tries to play him. As such, teams that are considering trading Watson will have to be prepared for the league to potentially place him on the exempt list if they attempt to make his debut. This would be equivalent to suspension.
Can play
Ore: What’s to know about the sexual assault lawsuits against Deshan Watson?
Can Deshan Watson play in 2021?
Watson is technically eligible to play in 2021 as of this writing. The NFL has yet to suspend him and, if the Texans so choose, they may include him in the starting lineup. He has yet to take that approach as they attempt to trade him while navigating the charges leveled against him.
That said, any team that trades for Watson can play him if they want. It doesn’t look like the NFL will suspend him just yet; They are waiting for Watson’s criminal proceedings to end before launching their own investigation, as Watson’s layer Rusty Hardin explained in August.
“The NFL regularly tries not to reach the defendant and his lawyers and seeks evidence from them until the criminal investigation is over,” Hardin said. “Historically, they want to make sure they don’t interfere with the criminal investigation. When the criminal investigation is over, they’ll do their own separate finishing. … I had no contact with the NFL, except to initially call K and says, ‘Whenever the time is right, we will cooperate fully. You let us know.’ And that’s what’s going to happen.”
It may be some time before the investigation ends, so the NFL is unlikely to suspend Watson. However, there is another tool the league can use to effectively suspend Watson if they so desire: the commissioner’s exemption list.
Can play in 2021
According to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Texans do not plan to play quarterback Deshan Watson during the 2021 NFL season.
Watson is currently facing 22 active civil charges and 10 criminal complaints on sexual misconduct charges. Watson’s attorney, Rusty Hardin, has previously said that all 22 plaintiffs lied about Watson’s conduct and that any alleged sexual activity that occurred during Watson’s massage appointments was consensual.
The NFL, like the local police, is investigating Watson’s conduct. There is also an open grand jury investigation into criminal misconduct.
While currently under investigation, Watson has not been banned by the NFL from participating in team activities.
Watson has been ruled out of Sunday’s Houston game versus the Jaguars for non-football reasons. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, he would be excluded under that limitation, except at a dramatic turn.
