Editor’s note: This story contains accounts of sexual assault. If you or someone you know is a survivor of sexual assault, contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at or at https://www.rainn.org.
On the night of the first round of the 2022 NFL draft, Bengals coach Zac Taylor opened his press conference by speaking on a story that Defector published that day on offensive lineman Jackson Carman being accused of sexual assault during his time at Clemson.
“First off, I am aware there is a story about Jackson Carman today,” Taylor said. “I don’t have any comment on that.”
Taylor provided no information on the situation, even when another reporter asked later whether the Bengals were aware of the sexual assault allegations against Carman ahead of the 2021 draft.
Defector’s Kalyn Kahler reported on the allegation in detail, a story that had not previously been covered in the media despite the investigation occurring in 2020.
In Kahler’s reporting, Carman was accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl, who is referred to as Jane Doe in the report, when he was an 18-year-old freshman at Clemson. Doe called the Clemson University Police Department to report Carman in May 2020, two years after the incident.
In the detailed account, Doe explains that the two met through Instagram and agreed to go on a couple of dates. On the second date, Carman brought her back to his dorm room. That’s where Carman began kissing her and trying to unzip her pants before she repeatedly told him no.
“And he wouldn’t stop,” Doe told police in her first interview. “And I told him no. I was like, please don’t do this, and he did it anyway. He was on top of me the entire time and at that point if I had already told you no a few times and you’re continuing to do it; I was just scared at that point. I didn’t feel like there was much I could do, so.”
But, despite her pleas, Carman took her pants off. Doe then covered her face in embarrassment, so she could not recount many of the visual details.
“I was embarrassed because I felt like I had no power,” Doe said. “I was kind of in denial of what was going on at the moment. I was like, ‘No, no, I’m—I’m not ready yet; I don’t want to do this.’ And he then took off his sweats and I can’t sit here and tell you I don’t know if he wore protection. I don’t know. I never looked at him. I didn’t—”
Carman began to penetrate her. Doe was asked what she considered this moment to be, and she said “rape“ and that he was “forcing himself on [her].”
These accounts were described in 2020, when Clemson police began the investigation. Carman never spoke to police during the five-month investigation, providing only a written statement on the advice of one of his lawyers, despite initially agreeing to an interview with CUPD. He continued to say the sex was “consensual.”
“I had sex with [redacted] approximately two years ago when I was 18 years old and it was consensual,” Carman’s statement read.
No charges were filed, so Carman was never suspended or put on probation. He was able to still play during the 2020 season at Clemson.
During scout visits in fall 2020, the school never told the NFL teams that Carman was accused of sexual assault. The teams were unaware of the situation until Carman worked out for NFL teams in April 2021 at Clemson, just a few weeks ahead of the 2021 draft. He read aloud a statement once again saying the sex was consensual.
Four teams—Seahawks, Jets, Bears and Texans—then requested for the police reports in 2021. The Bengals did not, and it is unclear whether they were made aware of the accusations or not. One NFL offensive line coach recounted that that Carman answered questions after sharing a statement on the incident during an April workout for teams ahead of the NFL draft.
“That might have been the first time that was brought up,” an unnamed NFL coach who was present that day said. “I think it was a surprise to people; I don’t think anybody had heard that.”
Despite the allegation, the Bengals selected Carman at pick No. 46 in the draft. The team has yet to comment this year on the matter.
