Support For Deshaun Watson Unwavering In Cleveland Browns Locker Room

The Browns signal caller faces another sexual assault lawsuit, which was filed in Houston Texas earlier in the week

Sep 8, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) leaps away from Dallas Cowboys safety Juanyeh Thomas (30) during the fourth quarter at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images / Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

In the aftermath of a 33-17 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Monday, Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson received some high praise from a duo of teammates on Monday. "He was a warrior," is how running back Jerome Ford and safety Rodney McLeod described their QB.

That was before news of a new sexual assault lawsuit being filed against Watson in Houston, Texas was revealed. This new case alleges that Watson inappropriately exposed himself to a woman he was preparing to go on a date with, coerced her into massaging him and ultimately forced himself onto her sexually. The NFL has since opened an investigation into the matter under a potential personal conduct policy violation.

ICYMI: The lawyer of Deshaun Watson's latest accuser says they have "pertinent video" which they will show to the NFL when they meet in a few weeks https://t.co/Bq8DVTQgY7

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Despite all that, it's business as usual for Watson inside the Browns team facility. He practiced this week like normal and will try to block out all the outside pressures baring down on him and attempt to play a game against the Jaguars on Sunday. It helps that despite everything, his teammates haven't even flinched in their support of the embattled QB.

"No I wouldn't say so," veteran wideout Amari Cooper said of whether or not Watson's off-the-field situation was a distraction for the team. "In life we all go through things. Like an old head, veteran told me in my rookie year, whatever you are going through off the field, once you cross those lines out there, you just leave it at home. You focus on football. So I think the veterans on this team do a pretty good job at doing that."

Not only has the situation not seemed to permeate into a bigger problem in the locker room, but Watson's mere attempt to block it out and show up to work has won over his teammates even more.

"Deshaun's a strong guy," wide receiver Jerry Jeudy said. "Going through the situations he's going through he still came out here, practiced, worked hard. He coulda been sad all week but he kept pressing, kept it going, kept pushing so, kudos to him."

Cleveland Browns backup quarterback Jameis Winston, right, welcomes quarterback Deshaun Watson (4), wide receiver Jerry Jeudy (3) and wide receiver Amari Cooper (2) off the field during the first half of an NFL football game at Huntington Bank Field, Sunday, Sept. 8, 2024, in Cleveland, Ohio. / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK

As Jeudy eluded to, the legal situation isn't the only thing that's found itself in Watson's orbit recently. He also had to cope with the loss of his father and a college teammate in back-to-back days before Week 1. Watson shared after the Cowboys game that the team had granted him permission to take some time if needed, but he chose to stay in Cleveland to prepare for the season. That's resonated with plenty of his teammates.

"Listen, man, I know he has a lot on his plate," said safety Grant Delpit. We come in this building, we come here to work, and we come here to execute what we got to do. I let him know, man, I got your back no matter what. And as long as you play for this team and as long as these guys – you in this locker room with us, and even after that, I would never do anything to hurt you or even go against you. So that's my quarterback. And I would imagine yourself in a situation, nobody knows what he's really going through, nobody knows the real details, but I got my quarterback's back."

Similarly, fellow defensive back Denzel Ward expressed support for his QB while the legal process plays out.

"It's not a distraction," asserted Ward. "I just think first, there's a lot of negativity and hate in this world. I think that you gotta wrap your arms around people and express more love. You don't know what a lot of people go through out here. We all go through our own things and things happen. I'm sure they'll take care of things legally and stuff like that, but people don't know full stories of everything."

For now all anyone can do is wait for the process to run it's course. And while it may seem like the weight of the world is baring down on Watson, inside the team's facility in Berea, support for the 28-year-old signal caller is unwavering.