Two women are suing kicker Brandon McManus and the Jacksonville Jaguars, alleging McManus sexually assaulted them during the team’s overseas flight to London last year, according to court documents obtained by ESPN.
The two women — identified as Jane Doe I and Jane Doe II in the lawsuit filed Friday evening in Duval County Circuit Civil Court — accuse McManus of rubbing up against them and rubbing up against them. They also accuse the Jaguars of failing to supervise McManus and failing to create a safe environment for team personnel.
They are seeking more than $1 million and demanding a jury trial.
“These are absolutely fictitious and blatantly false allegations made as part of a campaign to defame and disparage a talented and respected NFL player,” McManus’ attorney Brett R. Gallaway said. in a press release Monday evening. “We intend to aggressively defend Brandon’s rights and integrity and clear his name by exposing what these claims really are: an extortion attempt.”
Attorney Tony Buzbee, whose firm represents both women, said in a statement posted on Instagram Tuesday that an attempt to settle the case was made before the lawsuit was filed.
“Our resolution efforts have been met with arrogance, ignorance and stupidity, which is strikingly similar to the reaction of Deshaun Watson’s team when we attempted to resolve these cases before the filing “The allegations made in this lawsuit are very serious. We made sure to fully examine them and speak to the witnesses before even taking on the cases. We will pursue this case with the same tenacity for which we are known. he wrote in his message.
The Jaguars also acknowledged the lawsuit in a statement Monday evening.
“We are aware of the complaint and recognize the importance of the claims,” the team said. “As we continue to study the matter, it is worth emphasizing that we insist on an organization built by people who represent our community and our game with the highest character and class.”
The Jaguars did not re-sign McManus this offseason; he signed a one-year, $3.6 million contract with the Washington Commanders on March 14.
“Earlier today, we were informed of the civil lawsuit filed on May 24 against Brandon McManus. We take allegations of this nature very seriously and are investigating this matter,” commanders said in a statement. “We are in communication with the League office and Brandon representation and will reserve further comment at this time.”
According to the lawsuit, both women worked as flight attendants on the Jaguars’ Sept. 28, 2023, Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings charter flight. They claim the flight “quickly turned into a party” as McManus and several other players disregarded the flight attendants’ personal space, air travel security and federal law. The lawsuit also claims that McManus recruited three other flight attendants to the party and handed out $100 bills to encourage them to drink and dance in ways that were inappropriate for him.
Doe I accuses McManus of trying to kiss her while she was seated during turbulence and of rubbing against her twice while she was serving the flight’s two meal services, according to the trial. Doe I alleges that during the first assault, she made eye contact with another Jaguars player, who she said looked ashamed of McManus’ behavior.
Doe II alleges that McManus rubbed himself against her while she was serving the second meal of the flight. According to the lawsuit, Doe II confronted McManus, who “smiled and walked away.” The lawsuit says Doe II stayed in the plane’s second floor to avoid McManus during the team’s Oct. 8 flight from London to Jacksonville.
The lawsuit says the September flight was the first Jaguar charter flight that both women had worked on, and that they experienced severe mental anguish, anxiety, psychological and emotional distress, embarrassment and humiliation. They were removed from the core crew that operates Jaguar’s charter flights, something they worked hard to achieve, according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges that the Jaguars committed gross negligence by failing to properly hire McManus, train him on inappropriate and sexual contact with flight attendants, supervise him during the flight, adopt policies and procedures for protect flight attendants from employee sexual misconduct and apply a zero. -tolerance policy regarding inappropriate behavior.
Jaguars coach Doug Pederson said Tuesday he didn’t want to comment on the lawsuit until more information is gathered, but he said Monday was the first time he heard about the allegations against McManus. He also said he would not describe the atmosphere on the chartered flight to London as a party.
“A typical flight doesn’t go like this,” he said. “It’s a business trip, and that’s how we approach it from an organizational standpoint, from a league standpoint. So when I read that, that part is disappointing.”
Pederson also said the seating arrangement on the flight was somewhat segregated.
“I’m not going to address a ton of these questions right now until I get more information, but we sit down – maybe I’ll (make) a quick comment – we sit down and we want make sure the players are together and the coaches together and the staff together and things of that nature and everyone is comfortable and has space,” he said.
McManus signed with the Jaguars on May 5, 2023, after being released by the Denver Broncos. The Jaguars gave him a one-year contract worth $2 million, and he made 30 of 37 field goal attempts and 35 extra point attempts last season.
ESPN’s John Keim contributed to this report.
