Sports Briefs: 03-19-21

NFL reviewing sex assault claims against Texans QB Deshaun Watson

DALLAS — The NFL said Thursday that it was investigating allegations that Houston Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson sexually assaulted multiple women after three massage therapists filed lawsuits against the star player.

In lawsuits filed this week, two of the woman claim that Watson touched them with his penis during massages last year, and the third alleges he forced her to perform oral sex.

Watson, 25, has broadly denied that he acted inappropriately and said he looks forward to clearing his name.

The women, who are not named in the lawsuits, are represented by Houston lawyer Tony Buzbee, who posted a picture Thursday of a letter from the NFL on his verified Instagram account that said the league had launched an investigation. Buzbee later deleted the post.

NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy confirmed in an email to The Associated Press that the matter was “under review of the personal conduct policy.”

Bills agree to sign Trubisky as a backup to Josh Allen

BUFFALO, N.Y. — After four sometimes rocky seasons in Chicago, Mitch Trubisky is getting an opportunity to re-establish himself as Josh Allen’s backup in Buffalo.

The Bills used what little space they had left under the salary cap to upgrade their quarterback depth by agreeing to sign Trubisky to a one-year contract on Thursday.

The addition provides the championship-minded Bills valuable insurance in the event Allen gets injured in their quest to build on reaching the AFC championship game for the first time in 27 years. Trubisky gets the luxury of developing in Buffalo’s pass-first offense, and a fresh start after the Bears cooled on the North Carolina product they selected with the No. 2 pick in the 2017 draft.