Clay: 'Chances of Deshaun Watson Playing a Full Season Are Virtually Zero'

The situation with star NFL quarterback Deshaun Watson continues to grow. At this point, it seems like new lawsuits are being filed daily against the Houston Texan, and that has some, including OutKick founder Clay Travis, questioning his future.

Folks, things aren't looking good for the 25-year-old quarterback. Nothing has been proven at this point, but 13 different women have now accused Watson of sexual assault, and 14 lawsuits total have been brought against him.

Those are significant -- and alarming -- numbers.

Regardless of whether these accusations are valid, it's time to start thinking about how they will impact Watson's status in the league. Clay isn't confident that Watson will be available for the entire 2021 season. In fact, he puts the chances of that happening at "virtually zero."

"I would put the chances of Deshaun Watson playing a full season of football anywhere in 2021 at virtually zero," Clay said during OutKick the Coverage. "And I think it’s possible that Deshaun Watson may not play football again for years. It’s even possible that Deshaun Watson’s football career could be over."

Well, that's a depressing thought, but it's also realistic. The number of civil and/or criminal charges Watson may face is unlike anything we've seen from a star athlete at the peak of his career.

"I don’t know that we’ve ever seen a player as good as Deshaun Watson facing criminal charges potentially and at a minimum, 14 sexual assault charges in a civil context," Clay said. "I can’t remember a player who was as good as Deshaun Watson ever facing this many serious charges.

"Now, Ray Lewis had a double murder charge. Obviously that was massive at the height of his career. But most of the athletes that have gotten in trouble, by and large, none of them have had this many different accusers that are involved as Deshaun Watson does right now. And none of them have been at the apex of their athletic ability, and certainly none of them have been a quarterback who had just signed a $160 million extension like Deshaun Watson."

Now, this is all a worst-case scenario for Watson, and Clay explains why he thinks such a worst-case scenario will likely keep Watson from playing the entire 2021 season:

"If he were able to somehow avoid any significant punishment or liability finding, both criminally and civilly, he would still have to deal with the investigation that the NFL has now brought to bear, which is also massively important in terms of his ability to take the field," Clay pointed out.

"And the NFL personal conduct policy doesn’t require that he be innocent. It also doesn’t require that he be not guilty. The mere perception of issues could be enough to require a suspension, which is what we all saw with a guy like Ezekiel Elliott a couple years ago."

Clay does a great job going through various possibilities and how each could impact Watson's ability to play this season. He provides a great in-depth analysis about where things could be heading for Watson, so you should definitely check out the podcast as soon as it comes out later today.

Follow Clint Lamb on Twitter @ClintRLamb.