Deshaun Watson Insists ‘I Never Assaulted Any Woman’

Deshaun Watson, the Cleveland Browns' new quarterback, at a news conference Friday.Credit...Ron Schwane/Associated PressThe N.F.L. quarterback Deshaun Watson on Friday gave his most direct and forceful denial to date of the accusations of sexual misconduct brought against him by two dozen women.

The former Houston Texans quarterback, speaking at a news conference held by his new team, the Cleveland Browns, said, “I have never assaulted any woman. I have never disrespected any woman.”

The Browns traded for the 26-year-old quarterback last week, sending the Texans a package that included three first-round picks and giving Watson a fully guaranteed, five-year $230 million contract that set a new…