Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has labeled a report accusing him of inappropriate sexual behavior by multiple message therapists “unequivocally false.”
According to a Thursday report in The Baltimore Banner, six massage therapists who worked with Tucker between 2012 and 2016 accused him of misbehavior, while two spas banned him from returning.
Tucker is accused of exposing his genitals, brushing two therapists with his exposed penis, and leaving what they believed to be semen on the massage table after three treatments, according to the Banner.
“I’ve told people about this over the years, and they either act like it’s hot goss[ip] or a joke,” an unnamed therapist who allegedly worked on Tucker in 2016 told the Banner. “But it was really degrading.”
The NFL has launched its own, league spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement.
NFL star Justin Tucker has been accused of inappropriate sexual behavior by multiple message therapists. He denies the claims. (AP)
“We first became aware of the allegations from the reporter investigating this story as they were not previously shared with the NFL,” league spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement. “We take any allegation seriously and will look into the matter.”
According to the Banner, a representative of the spa chain Ojas said Tucker was “immediately terminated as a client” in 2014 after “a massage therapist reported an incident that allegedly occurred during a massage therapy session with Justin Tucker.” Owners of Studio 921, which is now closed, said through an attorney they “took immediate and decisive action to ban this individual from our business and services to ensure a safe environment for all.”
In a lengthy response on social media, 35-year-old Trucker, who just finished his 13th season in the NFL, denied the claims.
“In accusing me of misconduct, the article takes innocuous, or ambiguous, interactions and skews them so out of proportion they are no longer recognizable, and it presents vague insinuations as fact,” he said.
“I have never received any complaints from a massage therapist, have never been dismissed from a massage therapy or bodywork session, and have never been told that I was not welcome at any spa or other place of business,” he added.
The All-Pro kicker said he hired a defamation law firm upon hearing that the article was being written. According to his statement, the Banner refused to reveal the full claims being levied against him, and gave him little time to provide a response once “some of this information” was shared.
The All-Pro kicker holds the record for the longest successful field goal in history, and signed a multi-million dollar contract extension in 2022. (AP)
According to the Banner, players can be disciplined by the league if they’re found to have engaged in conduct that poses a “genuine threat” to the safety and well-being of others or “undermines or puts at risk the integrity of the NFL.”
The league prescribes a six-game ban for more serious violations of the policy, including “sexual assault involving physical force or committed against someone incapable of giving consent,” according to the outlet.
The Banner reports that the allegations could challenge the Ravens’ long-held “zero tolerance” personnel policy.
Tucker has spent the entirety of his 13-year career 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. “We take any allegations of this nature seriously and will continue to monitor the situation.”
The allegations have some similarities to unrelated accusations made against another NFL player, quarterback Deshaun Watson. More than two dozen women accused Watson of sexual assault and harassment during massage 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.
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Additional reporting by AP.
