Eagles Deny Suggestion That They Violated Tampering Rules

The Eagles signing of Saquon Barkley has sparked some controversy on its own. Now, it may spark questions surrounding NFL rules

Penn State head coach James Franklin spoke with reporters following the reports the Eagles acquired Saquon Barkley during the legal tampering period. (The Eagles officially confirmed the news after 4 PM on Wednesday, when the new league year began and contracts could become official.) When speaking to the media, Franklin seemed to suggest that Eagles General Manager Howie Roseman spoke to Barkley directly.

“He said that was one of the first things that Howie said to him on the phone as part of his sales pitch,” Franklin said Tuesday. “Not only the Philadelphia Eagles and that that but also the connection with Penn State and the fan base as well. So just a really cool opportunity.”

If Roseman did in fact speak to Barkley, that would have violated anti-tampering rules. During the legal tampering period prior to the start of the new league year, teams may only contact a player directly if they are not represented by an agent. Otherwise, all communication must flow through the agent.

An Eagles spokesperson denied that any rules were broken to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, who broke the story. The spokesperson affirmed that all player recruiting is facilitated through a player’s agent, according to PFT.

The NFL’s anti-tampering rules pertaining to players seem to be randomly enforced. For example, the deal between the Chicago Bears and D’Andre Swift was finalized less than 15 minutes after the tampering period opened, based on timestamps from the announcement tweet from NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The Chiefs, meanwhile, were penalized heavily for poaching Jeremy Maclin from the Eagles in 2016 when reports surfaced that they violated the anti-tampering rules. Additionally, teams that race out in front rarely neglect to break a few eggs, so it could easily be condoned if Roseman did a hard sell to Barkley.

If the NFL finds evidence that anti-tampering violations occurred and elects to enforce them, potential penalties include forfeiture of a draft pick.