Cris Collinsworth gives 'what's happened to him' description of Deshaun Watson allegations
NBC analyst and former Cincinnati Bengals receiver Cris Collinsworth called Thursday's preseason game between the New York Jets and the Cleveland Browns with play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico, and the pair discussed Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson's return from suspension for violations of the NFL's personal conduct policy resulting from more than 20 allegations of sexual misconduct that led to civil lawsuits.
Collinsworth drew criticism on social media for the following opinion: "Almost automatically, you have to acknowledge what's happened to him off the field before you're allowed to even begin a conversation about on the field."
Collinsworth's remark was reminiscent of a comment he made in 2021 about former NFL receiver Antonio Brown, who had faced accusations of sexual assault, rape, sexual misconduct, battery, burglary and criminal mischief. Collinsworth described the allegations as "some off-the-field stuff."
Earlier, Chris Simms drew criticism for saying "you're going to see the old Deshaun Watson that we used to see before he had some issues."
Awful Announcing shared video of Collinsworth's remark via Twitter:
Cris Collinsworth's Deshaun Watson comment around 1:37 here of "Almost automatically, you have to acknowledge what happened to him off the field before you're allowed to even begin a conversation about on the field" drew a lot of reaction.
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) August 4, 2023
Social media reactions:
this might seem like a small thing, but it's this kind of media coverage that normalizes sexual violence, reframes Watson as the victim and excuses everyone involved (not just Watson, but the Browns and the league) in bringing him back. it's atrocious, and it's sad.
— Daniel Sailofsky (@DanielSailofsky) August 4, 2023
The gap between Tirico talking about Watson's sexual assaults, vs Collinsworth talking about it, is incredible. One of these men is thoughtful and the other is Cris Collinsworth.
— Michael (Turbo Dude)✡️ (@fakeman_michael) August 4, 2023
Blows my mind (although it should not) that these announcers STILL do not know how to properly talk about Deshaun Watson. Do better @NFL. Oh wait I forgot you all are incapable of doing better. @NFL
— Anastacia Williams (she/her) (@Anastacia026) August 4, 2023
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This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Collinsworth describes Watson allegations as 'what's happened to him'
