Cleveland Browns quarterback Deshaun Watson, 26, was suspended from the NFL for six games after being found guilty of sexually assaulting two dozen women during sports-related massages while he played for the Houston Texans, but NFL commissioner Roger Goodell appealed the ruling and asked for a harsher punishment. “[Judge Sue L. Robinson] was very clear about the evidence. She reinforced the evidence, that there were multiple violations here and they were egregious, and that it was predatory behavior,” Goodell explained, per The Associated Press. “Those were always things we felt was really important for us to address and in a way that’s responsible.”
With a new report claiming that Deshaun “would accept an eight-game suspension and $5 million fine to avoid missing the entire season”, an even greater focus returned to his case. One person who has stuck by Deshaun’s side during the uncertain time in the athlete’s life is his girlfriend, Jilly Anais, 26. Learn all there is to know about Jilly and her relationship with Deshaun below.
Who Is Jilly Anais?
Jilly Anais is a Dutch and Creole actress, singer, and model. She was born in Houston, Texas, but moved to Los Angeles at the age of 18 to make her entertainment dreams come true. She made her television debut in a 2013 episode of East Los High and her latest acting nod came in 2019’s drama God Send. Her earliest track on Spotify is 2018’s “Sexy”, which was followed by “Wait For It” and “Milano”. She has released seven charting singles on iTunes, according to her Spotify profile, and in 2022, she dropped her debut EP, COPY & Paste.
“The stage was always my second home. I started doing competitive dance the second I could walk. I was two years old, my mom and dad put me in dance. That’s when I fell in love with the stage,” JIllytold AllHipHop in June 2022. “Shortly after in middle school, I started taking vocal lessons and started doing cover videos. I started covering Drake songs, Rihanna songs, Beyonce, Destiny’s Child songs.” She added that she started taking music seriously at the age of 16.
She’s also quite the impressive YouTuber, as she often posts vlogs and Q&A sessions on her YouTube channel along with her music videos. It seems as if Jilly is a woman who can do it all!
How Did Jilly and Deshaun Meet?
Jilly and Deshaun “made eye contact” at Catch restaurant in Los Angeles one night in 2019, and they both said they felt a familiarity with each other right then and there in a YouTube video posted in April 2020. However, they didn’t talk until Jilly by chance happened to go through her direct messages a few days later. “It was four days later. I got a DM from him and he sent me a picture of me and my grandmother … and long story short he DM’d me that picture and was like, ‘This is a legendary picture, you should frame this,'” Jilly recalled. “From that comment, we literally were having a conversation, a complete conversation,” Deshaun, who was present for the video, noted.
The pair ended up meeting up for some hot yoga and then enjoyed a five-and-a-half-hour lunch together. They’ve been inseparable ever since and went Instagram official on Halloween of 2019, for which they dressed up as Jack Skellington from The Nightmare Before Christmas and Sally, the hand-stitched ragdoll from the film.
Jilly Has An Adorable Pet Name For Deshaun
While most of Jilly’s Instagram feed is taken up by modeling photos, when Deshaun does make an appearance, he is called the same nickname: Lovebug. The term of endearment can be seen attached to most of the posts that include the NFL player on Jilly’s feed, such as one celebrating his birthday. “Happy Birthday LoveBug! Walking hand in hand with you 4L”, Jilly wrote alongside several photos of the pair on a tropical vacation in 2021.
Deshaun Has A Lot Of Love For Jilly
The beautiful model appears to make more appearances on Deshaun’s Instagram page than he makes on hers, and in a 2020 post, Deshaun gushed about his supportive woman. “I’m PROUD OF YOU LUV! Thank you for rockin’ with me through the good & the bad!” he exclaimed in a 2020 carousel of snapshots with the actress. “I adore you and you motivate me. You my best friend shorty and we got many more memories & blessings to come! Love you Girl!” Considering Jilly has stayed by his side during his sexual assault scandal, it’s clear she is dedicated for “the good & the bad” Deshaun spoke about.