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The Deshaun Watson saga appears to now be over. After months and months of speculation surrounding his possible suspension, it's been confirmed that he'll be out for 11 games and will be paying a $5-million fine.
Nonetheless, many felt a year-long or even indefinite suspension would've been more acceptable. Countless pundits, fans, and analysts alike agreed that the Browns quarterback's sexual misconduct should've seen him sit out the entire season.
The league and Roger Goodell reportedly wanted a full-year ban, but didn't achieve as much though. So why didn't they push harder and make Watson sit out the entire 2022-23 season?
Here are three reasons why the NFL was scared to ban the quarterback for a full season.
#3 - The NFL didn't want Watson playing in 2022
Had Commissioner Goodell gone ahead with the season-long suspension, Watson's representatives would have filed an injunction and the matter would have gone through federal court.
What does that mean? In a nutshell, the injunction would have kept Watson on the field. So with all the noise surrounding the suspension and what the 26-year-old allegedly did, he would be free to play until the matter successfully went through court.
The former Texans shot-caller could have played the entire 2022-23 NFL season if the court case dragged on for long enough. Fans and the NFL world in general wouldn't have been happy. The quicker the case is essentially put to bed, the better for the NFL.
The league didn't want to have Watson and his case hanging over the season. It would have made for messy viewing had the 26-year-old been allowed to play while his case was still going through the courts.
By settling for an 11-game ban, the league at least made Watson miss the majority of the season, even if they wanted a year-long ban at minimum.
#2 - The NFL wanted the matter done and dusted
The saga with the 26-year-old had dragged on and on for what felt like forever. There was constant back and forth over how long a potential suspension would be. It was dominating the headlines daily and taking away some of the excitement with the new league season starting soon.
It could simply be a matter of the league wanting it to end and end quickly. As harsh and cold as it sounds, the league wouldn't want this to distract the media and fans from the start of the season.
Had they not done that, it is likely that the situation wouldn't have been settled at all this season and the 26-year-old would have been cleared to play.
#1 - The lawsuit that would have followed
It's no secret that the NFL wanted either an indefinite ban or a year-long ban, but what the quarterback's camp had said might have stopped them from pursing it.
It is widely known that had the NFL suspended the 26-year-old for a full year, the quarterback's camp was going to sue the NFL.
This would've made the situation ugly as it would have dragged through the court system. We all know how long court cases can take and it would've cost the league a lot of money to press ahead with this.
