John Dorsey’s press conference addressing the Cleveland Browns signing controversial RB Kareem Hunt revealed the GM’s “extensive research” sounds a lot better in a statement than when actually pressed about the details.
When asked if Hunt had personally apologized to the victims in question in the three separate incidents under investigation by the NFL, Dorsey deferred.
“We have talked to numerous people in doing our extensive research with this, and he’s truly remorseful for what he has done,” Dorsey responded. “He understands the act that he has committed is wrong.”
He hammered the point of extensive research several times in his 10-minute press conference.
“What it does is, we’ve done our extensive research,” Dorsey continued. “We came away that the act was egregious. He is extremely remorseful for it moving forward.”
Yet the extensive research Dorsey and the Browns conducted did not involve talking directly to the female victim in the incident from the Cleveland hotel.
“I talked to a lot of people during the course of our research,’’ the GM said. “I didn’t get a chance to talk to that victim. That’s probably part of her privacy stuff. I didn’t get a chance to talk to her.”
While there might be privacy concerns, it’s interesting Dorsey and his investigative team have not confirmed the victim’s statement personally or spoken with her. Speaking with “multitudes of people” is a good start, but it seems the person most affected by Hunt’s actions are not one of them.
Dorsey also admitted he has not spoken with any local women’s shelters in Cleveland to consult with them or other victims of similar circumstance, but he did say he had experience with that from his days in Kansas City.
In addition, Dorsey did not consult with any current Browns players about the potential fit or attitude in the locker room. That is important, because it is those players and future teammates who will have to deal with a lot of blowback about Hunt, as well as handle the locker room chemistry.
