By Diego Thompson
Fan Go Sports
Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson has apparently caught the attention of the FBI, with the Bureau understood to be investigating the allegations of sexual assault and inappropriate behavior made against him.
That is according to Watson’s lawyer Rusty Hardin, who also made claims of the player speaking to the FBI about allegations of extortion as it pertains to one of the 23 lawsuits filed against him – 22 of these suits remain active.
“In April, the FBI came to us and told us they were investigating a matter as to whether one of Mr. [Tony] Buzbee’s clients had committed extortion in the way they were demanding money from Deshaun or what they would do if they didn’t pay it,” Hardin told a news conference, according to ESPN.
“We were not the ones who contacted them; they contacted us. We talked to [the FBI]. We even let them interview Deshaun — and if y’all can find a lawyer that will let his client talk to the FBI if the lawyer had thought his client had done anything wrong or had any exposure, then I’ll be very, very surprised.”
Buzbee, legal counsel for the woman suing Watson, told the League of Justice website the FBI also met with him to discuss the case and spoke to a number of plaintiffs as well. However, Hardin isn’t of the view that the QB is being investigated, rather the allegations coming from Buzbee.
He noted Watson will continue cooperating with all particles involved in the investigation.
“I don’t think they’re investigating Deshaun,” Hardin explained. “What they’re investigating is the allegations Buzbee has made in his lawsuits. I didn’t know about that until yesterday, and then I checked it out and it’s true. They are.
“We will continue to cooperate with [the FBI] in any way that they want,” Hardin said. “We have from the first cooperated with the Houston Police Department, cooperated with the district attorney’s office, and we’ll cooperate with the FBI, and ultimately, down the line, we’ll cooperate with the NFL because we know Deshaun has done absolutely nothing wrong.”
During the news conference, Hardin read out what he claimed were text messages sent by the female accuser to Watson. He stated the texts did not mention an attack on December 28 last year while at a massage session, adding the woman said she apologized for her actions.
Buzbee would counter by telling The Associated Press Hardin is attacking the women who have sued the NFL star, making claims of Hardin being “focused on trying to attack me or my clients, and I’m tired of it.”
Back in July, Watson’s defense lawyer told ESPN’s John Barr the player was the subject of complaints made by 10 women to the Houston Police Department. According to Hardin, eight of them are among 22 persons who have filed lawsuits against the 25-year-old quarterback.
He has also revealed that the player has not been in communication with the NFL over the league’s own investigation of the lawsuits.
“The NFL regularly tries to not reach out to the defendant and his lawyers and seek evidence from them until the criminal investigation is over,” he explained. “Historically, they want to make sure they don’t interfere with the criminal investigation. I have had no contact with the NFL except to call initially and say, whenever the time is appropriate, we will fully cooperate.”
In other news, the Texans – 13/10 to win their opener against the Jacksonville Jaguars, per the NFL picks, are reported to be cutting veteran wide receiver Taywan Taylor. The WR spent the last two seasons on the Cleveland Browns roster following a trade from the Tennessee Titans. The former third-round pick played in six games and was targeted twice with zero receptions on 51 snaps for Cleveland.
He caught a career-high 37 passes for 466 yards for the Titans in 2018 and has made 53 receptions for 697 yards over the course of his pro career, scoring no touchdowns with an average of 13.2 yards per catch.
There are still some players vying for that final WR spot in Houston. Four spots seem to be safe for the time being as vets Brandin Cooks and Chris Conley are most probable to get first-team reps.
Rookie wide receiver Nico Collins, though, has been the biggest surprise of the team’s training camp and is likely to be in the mix for early reps. Fourth-year player Anthony Miller, who came in via the trade route before camp began, will be on the final 53-man squad but there are questions over his fitness as he hasn’t practiced since suffering a shoulder injury vs. the Green Bay Packers.
