Deshaun Watson to start Cleveland Browns preseason opener despite facing suspension for sexual misconduct allegations

By Ben Morse, CNN

Updated 1042 GMT (1842 HKT) August 11, 2022

Deshaun Watson looks on during pre-season training.

(CNN)Cleveland Browns fans will get their first opportunity to see Deshaun Watson in game action on Friday after it was announced he would be starting their preseason opener, despite facing a suspension for sexual misconduct allegations.

Watson, as well as many other of the team's starters, will play against the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Browns announced on Wednesday. In a statement, the team said: «QB Deshaun Watson is scheduled to start the game at QB. The three-time Pro Bowler is set to make his Browns preseason debut after he was acquired in a trade with the Texans in March.»Watson is currently facing a six-game regular season suspension for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy in private meetings with massage therapists while he was with the Houston Texans. The decision, handed down last week by former federal judge Sue. L Robinson, came as a result of Watson's «predatory conduct.»Read MoreHowever, the six-game ban was well below the full-season suspension the NFL was seeking, and as a result is being appealed by the league. Speaking on Tuesday at an owners meeting in Minneapolis, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell called Watson's behavior «egregious» and «predatory.» When asked why the league continues to seek a harsher punishment for Watson, Goodell said: «Because we've seen the evidence. (Robinson) was very clear about the evidence, she reinforced the evidence that there was multiple violations here and they were egregious and it was predatory behavior.»«Those are things that we always felt were really important for us to address in a way that's responsible,» Goodell continued.Watson looks to pass