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NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says the league is still investigating the latest claims against Deshaun Watson

By ROB MAADDI AP Pro Football Writer

ATLANTA (AP) — NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the league is still reviewing the latest sexual assault and battery allegations against Deshaun Watson.

The Cleveland Browns quarterback has settled the civil lawsuit filed against him by the woman, but that doesn’t preclude him from being disciplined by the league.

“We are continuing our review as we would,” Goodell said Tuesday at the conclusion of the league’s fall meeting. “As you know, we take personal conduct policies seriously, so our employees work diligently.”

Following standard procedure, the league attempted to interview the plaintiff through her attorney, Tony Buzbee.

Watson was suspended for the first 11 games of 2022 for violating the league’s personal conduct policy after more than two dozen women accused him of sexual assault and inappropriate behavior during massage therapy sessions.

Watson was also fined $5 million and had to undergo a mandatory physical before being reinstated into the league.

The most recent lawsuit was filed on September 9 in Harris County, Texas. The unidentified woman claimed Watson sexually assaulted her during a dinner at her apartment in 2020. She sought more than $1 million in damages.

Watson, who is in his third season with Cleveland after being acquired from Houston in a controversial trade, had strongly denied the allegations. The 29-year-old has previously settled nearly two dozen civil lawsuits.

Watson struggled in Cleveland after the Browns traded a number of draft picks for him and gave him a guaranteed $230 million contract. The Browns are 1-5 this season and some fans are calling for the team to replace Watson in favor of backup Jameis Winston.

Kickoff progress

The NFL is pleased with the early results of the new kickoff rule and league executive Troy Vincent said no changes are planned this season.

The 32% response rate in six weeks is a 90% increase from last season, when the game was essentially “ceremonial,” as Vincent called it. The response rate was 17% at this point in 2023 and increased to 22% by the end of last season. A response rate of 33-35% is the goal, Vincent said.

There is discussion this offseason about moving the point of the ball from the 30-yard line to the 35-yard line after a touchback.

Jeff Miller, who oversees player health and safety, said there were no ACL or ACL injuries on kickoffs and only one concussion.

“What was the overall goal? This got the foot back into play and reduced the head injuries as well as some lower extremity injuries, which is all promising,” Vincent said.

Vincent added the league needs to consider how to make the onside kick a more viable option.

Hip drop tackles

Seven players have been fined for hip-drop tackles, but none in the last two weeks, Vincent said.

“Coaches and players have done a great job of sending in videos, whether it was from their own club without the player making the tackle or something in another game,” Vincent said.

No player has ever been penalized for a hip-drop tackle during a game. Vincent said there were about 22 questionable tackles, but none met the four-point criteria.

Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon has complained about an injury on a play that he believes should have been flagged for a hip drop tackle.

“It’s just so important that all four elements come out,” Vincent said. “If you look at it after the game, some of us just have a better sense and a better eye for when these things happen. If there is no relief and the legs become trapped, you need to stay away from it. But this is during the week, it gives us and many others a chance to evaluate so that one player doesn’t get penalized for something that didn’t happen, especially in real time when all things look kind of the same. We’ve probably flagged 22 so far that were questionable. But again, according to the letter of the law or the rule, all four elements were there, so we have to stay away from that.”

Fines for violent gestures

Several players have been fined or penalized this season for making violent gestures such as finger guns during celebrations.

There were eight penalties and fines in the first four weeks combined and two more in week 5. The fines ranged from $6,250 to $19,697 for Bengals receiver Ja’Marr Chase last week.

“Those guidelines and rules are in place,” Vincent said. “If you start getting violent, there is simply no place for that in professional football. … Just think about where we are as a society, and we have fans and kids getting into the game. You can make the first down, make a big tackle, make spontaneous gestures, but also violent gestures. … where we are and what we are trying to portray is simply not true. And we talked to the players, we talked to the coaches. We’re not trying to make it not fun, but we also have a responsibility as professional athletes.”

The Associated Press contributed to this article