Minutes after the news broke about the NFL and NFL Players Association coming to a settlement in the disciplinary case involving Deshaun Watson, the Cleveland Browns quarterback maintained his innocence after 24 women alleged sexual misconduct in civil lawsuits.
"I have always stood on my innocence and am going to continue to stand on that, but at the same time I have to continue to push forward on my life and my career," Watson said Thursday in a news conference. "And for us to be able to move forward, I have to be able to take steps and put pride to the side. I'm going to continue to stand on my innocence and keep pushing forward. I've always stood on not disrespecting or not sexually assaulting anyone."
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The terms of the settlement are that Watson will be suspended 11 games and fined $5 million for violating the league's personal conduct policy amid allegations of sexual misconduct, the league said in an announcement. Watson also agreed to mandatory counseling as part of the deal.
The agreement overrides jointly appointed disciplinary officer Sue L. Robinson's Aug. 1 ruling that Watson should serve a six-game suspension. However, the settlement falls well short of the yearlong ban the NFL had asked Robinson to level against Watson.
When pressed on what he was apologizing for if he maintained his innocence, Watson said it was "for everyone that was affected by this situation, there was a lot of people that was triggered."
Minutes after Watson left the podium, Browns owners Jimmy and Dee Haslam took the podium alongside general manager Andrew Berry to answer questions from reporters.
When specifically asked about Robinson's findings that Watson "engaged in sexual assault (as defined by the NFL)" Jimmy Haslam said he didn't "see any positives in commenting on that."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Cleveland Browns QB Deshaun Watson after settlement: 'I have always stood on my innocence'