“Who the hell do you think you are?” - Stephen A. Smith slams NFL over Deshaun Watson investigation

ESPN First Take co-host Stephen A. Smith went after the NFL's handling of the Deshaun Watson lawsuit, which has 24 women (and counting) accusing the quarterback of sexual misconduct.

In a fiery rant, Smith asked the league where it got off, using much more NSFW verbiage in his questioning. His rant's first focus was the league trying to function as a law enforcement agency:

“It's not just about embarrassment. Molly, it is very dangerous for a professional sports league to act as if the law enforcement, to act as if they're the judicial system. It's very dangerous. Because now, whatever decision you make, you're implying, you know, stuff we don't know. And that's not to say that that's false, because obviously you have people investigating the matter. And you may know stuff that we don't know. But the point is that people will want to know what you know. And that's not the job of the National Football League."

According to Smith, the NFL needs to make it known what it will and will not stand for:

"The job of the National Football League is to say this, this is our league, you impugn the integrity, and the shield, we have a right to act. And our decision is based on that alone, to do anything else resembles actions of law enforcement, which they are not qualified, nor do they have a right to do."

Smith pointed out that a civil suit has never been needed before, and the league can modify their decision on the fly if new evidence emerges. He went for the NFL's throat because of their inaction:

"Because at the end of the day, if you're the show, if you are Deshaun Watson or these women, and you and the NFL does anything against one side or the other, you have a right to zero in on the NFL and say who the hell do you think you are?”

Browns suffer from the Deshaun Watson drama either way

Deshaun Watson and his $230 million are Cleveland's problem now. Despite knowing that the former Clemson QB was in the middle of a major legal issue, the Browns traded for him and extended him until 2027.

The first half-season, or year, or more of that extension could be compromised if this legal drama continues on its current course.