NFL commissioner Roger Goodell has spoken out on the ‘serious’ allegations made against Baltimore Ravens star Justin Tucker last week.
Nine employees from five different spas and wellness centers across the Baltimore area have come forward with claims against the married 35-year-old and practicing Catholic.
Tucker, who has been married to his wife Amanda since 2015, is alleged to have exposed his genitals, brushed two workers with his exposed penis and left what was believed to be ejaculate on mᴀssage tables following three of his treatments.
Tucker, a practicing Catholic, has denied the allegations, which first appeared in the Baltimore Banner. In a statement, he branded them ‘unequivocally false’.
Goodell addressed the shocking allegations Monday ahead of the Super Bowl, he biggest date on the NHL’s calendar, this week.
The commissioner admitted he was ‘surprised’ by the accusations when pressed on the NFL’s stance on what should happen next.
Commissioner Roger Goodell has spoken out on the allegations made against Justin Tucker
The Ravens star was hit with allegations of inappropriate behavior by mᴀssage therapists
The kicker has been married to his college sweetheart, Amanda Bᴀss, since 2015
‘They are obviously serious issues and he is taking that seriously as are we,’ Goodell said.
‘But also, there’s a process for that, as you say, both civil and potentially criminal,’ Goodell added. ‘We obviously have NFL investigations for that, too. We obviously look at that where we don’t want to interfere with the criminal side of that.’
The initial accusations, according the Baltimore Banner, were made by therapists who worked on Tucker between 2012 and 2016 at four different high-end spas and wellness centers .
Two of the spas are said to have banned him from their facilities. Other therapists claimed that Tucker’s behavior forced them to cut sessions short, while some refused to work with him again.
Five of the six women who detailed their experiences to the Banner claimed that the NFL star had asked them to mᴀssages him pelvic area or inner thighs while he had an erection.
They alleged he would then maneuver his pelvis in a way that would cause the sheets to fall away, either partially or full exposing his genitals.
Two of the therapists, who have all wished to remain anonymous through fear of retaliation from the Ravens organization or fans, alleged that Tucker went as far as to brush them with his exposed penis.
On other occasions, three of the women claimed when they returned to the treatment room following their work on Tucker, they discovered ‘a large wet spot on the mᴀssage table,’ which they believed to be ejaculate.
The alleged incidents began in 2012 – the year of Tucker’s rookie season with the Ravens
Tucker met his now-wife Amanda during their freshman year at the University of Texas
Three new mᴀssage therapists later came forward with one claiming to The Banner that Tucker stroked her inner thigh during their session and left what she claims was ejaculate on her table afterwards.
The woman, who used to work at men’s high-end spa The QG in downtown Baltimore, also provided what she claimed to be an internal memo of her experiences with the Super Bowl winner from 2015.
It explained how Tucker ‘made it a point in previous sessions to expose his erect genitals to me by untucking the drapes, regardless of how many times I have to redrape him and tell him he is messing up the drapes’.
The NFL enforces a strict personal conduct policy that prohibits behavior that ‘undermines or puts at risk the integrity of the NFL.’
The allegations have some similarities to unrelated and even more severe accusations made against another NFL player, quarterback Deshaun Watson.
More than two dozen women accused Watson of Sєxual ᴀssault and harᴀssment during mᴀssage therapy sessions while he played for Houston.
After being traded to the Cleveland Browns, Watson missed the first 11 games of the 2022 season after an independent arbitrator determined that he had violated the league´s personal conduct policy.
Deshaun Watson was suspended for 11 games following allegations for Sєxual misconduct
Tucker just finished his 13th season in the NFL, all with the Ravens.
He’s achieved stardom both league-wide and among Baltimore fans in a way that’s rare for a kicker, and his 66-yard field goal in 2021 remains the longest successful kick in league history.
In 2022, Tucker agreed to a four-year contract extension through the 2027 season. That deal included $17.5 million guaranteed.
‘We are aware of the Baltimore Banner’s story regarding Justin Tucker as well as his response,’ a Ravens spokesman said earlier this week. ‘We take any allegations of this nature seriously and will continue to monitor the situation.’
