| Advertisement |
June 13 (UPI) -- For violating the NFL's anti-tampering rules regarding free agents, the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday were forced to give up the team's fifth-round pick in 2025 and pay a $250,000 fine. The move came after it had been alleged -- after a months-long investigation -- that the Falcons had "improper contact" with three players -- quarterback Kirk Cousins, wide receiver Darnell Mooney and tight end Charlie Woerner -- before the official free-agency period.
Advertisement
The team was docked a fifth-round 2025 draft pick and fined $250,000. The Falcons' general manager, Terry Fontenot, was fined $50,000 by the NFL.
The Atlanta Falcons signed Cousins, 35, a four-time Pro Bowl selection, to a four-year $180 million contract earlier in the year. Mooney, 26, got a three-year, $39 million contract,e while Woerner, also 26, got a three-year, $12 million deal.
The Falcons were "very exited about" about starting Cousins, Fontenot told reporters in April shortly after opting to use their first-round 2024 NFL Draft pick on another quarterback, Michael Penix Jr.
But during a press conference, Cousins inadvertently indicated that he had met with Falcons officials the day before in violation of NFL policy.
While policy permits clubs to engage with and negotiate all aspects of an NFL player contract with the certified agent of any prospective unrestricted free agent during the two-day negotiating period, according to the NFL, "any direct contact between the player and an employee or representative of the club is prohibited."
"This includes discussion of travel arrangements or other logistical matters, which the club acknowledges took place with regard to these three players."
The Georgia team said they were "pleased" the review is complete, while team owner Arthur Blank in April denied that the Falcons had violated NFL rules.
"We shared all of the information with the league," Blank told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution during league meetings in Florida at the time. "They'll review the process and the facts. They are in the middle of doing that. Whatever the result is, we'll deal with it."
In a separate statement, the Falcons said they "cooperated fully" with the NFL's review and that they "appreciate the NFL's thoroughness."
"As we do with every process, we will review how we operate and look for ways to improve," the Falcons said in a statement.
"I think you're reminded again there are things you control and there's a lot of things you don't control, and so, let's deal in reality and recognize that fact and then be a steward and not an owner," Cousins said last month on a podcast.
