Report: NFL steered part of the $7 million Deshaun Watson abuse fund to its own training programs

Four years after the NFL announced a $7 million fund for groups that fight sexual abuse as part of Deshaun Watson’s suspension, the league has acknowledged that not all of that money went to outside charities, according to a report by David Covucci.

Covucci, who tracked the NFL Foundation’s giving over the past three years, reported Wednesday night that the league told him part of the money is being used for its own “harassment education and training programs across the league.” That use was never mentioned when the league announced the fund in August 2022.

Where the $7 million came from

The fund was built into the settlement that ended Watson’s disciplinary case. The league’s independent disciplinary officer found that the quarterback had engaged in sexual assault and suspended him six games. The NFL appealed, and the two sides settled on an 11-game suspension and a $5 million fine. The league and the Cleveland Browns each added $1 million, bringing the total to $7 million.

At the time, the league said the fund would support non-profit organizations across the country that educate young people on healthy relationships, promote education and prevention of sexual misconduct and assault, support survivors, and work on related causes.

What the report found

• Covucci found that the NFL Foundation donated about $2.3 million to charities working on sexual abuse and misconduct prevention over the past three years, well short of $7 million.
• When he presented those findings, the league said it was still in the process of distributing the funds.
• The league pointed to four charities it had given to from the fund, which together totaled about $600,000. Covucci noted the foundation gave out about $97 million overall last year.
• The league then said the money was also being used for harassment education and training programs inside the NFL.

The Browns’ share

Covucci also raised questions about the Browns’ $1 million. The fund looked like a single shared pool when it was announced, but he said the league told him to check with the Browns about where the club’s money went. He added that the Haslam family, which owns the Browns, does not appear to have given anything to charities fighting sexual abuse since.

The NFL has not publicly detailed which organizations have received money from the fund or how much remains. Neither the league nor the Browns had announced any further accounting as of Thursday morning.

Why it matters

The fund was the part of Watson’s punishment meant to reach beyond football. More than two dozen women accused him of sexual misconduct during massage sessions, and the money was presented as a way to support survivors and prevention work. Watson served his suspension, returned to the field in December 2022 and remains in the league; he is starting for the Browns this season.

If a share of the fund went to the league’s own internal training, the money that reached outside groups is smaller than many fans and advocates would have assumed from the 2022 announcement. Watson’s case is also still the league’s reference point for off-field discipline, which keeps the question of how it was carried out in front of the league as it handles other conduct cases this fall, including the review of Tyreek Hill that we covered in our report on his civil verdict.