In a sport filled with folks who regularly lie when they have to, Falcons quarterback Kirk Cousins is honest. Perhaps too honest, from his new team’s perspective.
During a press conference conducted only a few hours after the official start of free agency, Cousins admitted to as many as four different tampering violations that happened during the 52-hour negotiating window, when the Falcons were permitted by rule to speak only to Cousins’s agent.
The league promptly launched an investigation. It wasn’t resolved before the draft, even though it could have been — and arguably should have been. The resolution reportedly will be announced this week, which means that multiple people behind the scenes surely know what’s coming.
The Eagles also are under scrutiny for something that, publicly, fell far short of a smoking gun in their negotiations with then-Giants running back Saquon Barkley. Both outcomes are expected this week.
The most anyone has said as to what might happen to the Falcons came with this line in the report from Adam Schefter of ESPN.com: “One league source indicated that the Falcons’ alleged transgressions are considered more significant, and the discipline is expected to be more severe for Atlanta.”
It’s unclear what that means, without knowing whether the Eagles will be punished. The statement implies that Philadelphia is facing some sort of sanction. They supposedly spoke directly to Barkley during the negotiating window. In 2016, that cost the Chiefs a third-round pick for directly speaking to Eagles receiver Jeremy Maclin during the negotiating window.
So let’s assume the league will be consistent, and the Eagles will lose a third-round pick in 2025. If Atlanta’s punishment will be “more severe” than that, what will it be?
Two years ago, the Dolphins lost a first-round pick in 2023 and a third-round pick in 2024 for tampering with Tom Brady and Sean Payton. Even though they ultimately acquired neither of them. What would the proper punishment be for…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-falcons-tampering-kirk-cousins-233639122.html
Author : ProFootball Talk on NBC Sports
Publish date : 2024-06-02 23:36:39
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