Deshaun Watson’s six-game suspension, imposed by a retired federal judge, was the first player conduct penalty reached by the N.F.L.’s new hearing process.
Former employees described an N.F.L. franchise bedeviled by executive departures, poor financial management, unpaid electric bills and a raft of firings, payouts and N.D.A.s.
Known as the Mad Bomber for his powerful arm, he led the Oakland Raiders to the Super Bowl and was among pro football’s top passers in the late 1960s and early ’70s.