The Cleveland Browns organization and Deshaun Watson finally spoke to the media following the trade that shocked the world that was initiated a week ago. Last Friday, Watson informed the Browns and Houston Texans that he had chosen Cleveland from among the other teams vying for his services.
The Texans announced the trade Friday night with the Browns following up with their announcement on Sunday.
Watson arrived in Berea on Thursday before taking a moment to step foot on the field at FirstEnergy Stadium with Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah and Greg Newsome II.
Friday afternoon, GM Andrew Berry and head coach Kevin Stefanski joined Watson in front of the media in Berea. The quarterback made it clear that he never assaulted or disrespected any women in answering questions during the press conference.
Owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam had their time with the media over a Zoom conference call. The Haslams reported they were out of the country Friday.
During their time with the media, both of the owners made it very clear that they became comfortable with acquiring Watson and that they trust the legal process.
Both owners spent time validating the concerns of fans but repeated their comfort with both Watson as a person and the legal system. The team is also “comfortable” with Watson’s legal team deciding how to proceed with the 22 civil lawsuits.
With the press conferences complete, but the Watson addition far from settled for some fans, the team will continue to look toward improving their team in free agency as they prepare for the NFL draft.