Why the NFL is reportedly investigating the Falcons and Eagles for tampering with Kirk Cousins and Saquon Barkley

The Falcons and Eagles are in some hot water.

Any time you can acquire a Pro Bowl-caliber quarterback or running back, it should be cause for tremendous celebration. So of course the Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles should pat themselves on the back for acquiring Kirk Cousins and Saquon Barkley, respectively.

But based on some recent public comments, they may have illegally tampered with both players before signing them.

On Wednesday, during Cousins’ introductory press conference with the Falcons, he inadvertently revealed that he had contact with Atlanta’s head athletic trainer while still negotiating his contract with the team. Meanwhile, Penn State’s James Franklin — who coached Barkley during his time with the Nittany Lions in college — said, once again, in public, that Eagles general manager Howie Roseman talked directly to Barkley during the “legal tampering” period.

These are both big no-nos and violations of the NFL’s tampering rules. As such, it should be unsurprising to learn that the league is now investigating the Falcons and Eagles for tampering, per ESPN’s Dan Graziano:

Per a league source, the NFL is looking into potential tampering by the Eagles and the Falcons related to the free-agent signings of Saquon Barkley and Kirk Cousins.

— Dan Graziano (@DanGrazianoESPN) March 14, 2024

To be clear, the potential tampering violations themselves are probably not what might get the Falcons and Eagles in trouble. It is an unspoken tenet that essentially every NFL team tampers by making direct contact with free agents when they’re not supposed to.

Which, duh: How else do you think all these free agency deals are agreed to so quickly?

The issue for the Falcons and Eagles is that they said the quiet part out loud. As long as you don’t reveal your tampering in public, the league will probably not punish you. Thanks to Cousins and Franklin’s accidental slips of the tongue, they potentially put both Atlanta and Philadelphia at the league’s mercy here.

It’s unclear what consequences the Falcons and Eagles could face if the league deems that they illegally tampered. Based on past precedents, like the Miami Dolphins’ tampering situation with Tom Brady, the expectation should probably be lost draft picks of a high variety.