NFL investigating Eagles for tampering. Did Philadelphia tamper with Saquon Barkley?

The Philadelphia Eagles denied accusations of violating the NFL's tampering policy after Saquon Barkley's former Penn State coach said that the running back spoke to general manager Howie Roseman during the negotiating window.

The NFL confirmed to USA TODAY Sports on Thursday that the league is looking into whether the 2022 NFC champions did break the tampering rule in luring the two-time Pro Bowler away from the New York Giants. Barkley joined the NFC East foe as a free agent.

Per North Jersey.com, part of the USA TODAY Network, the Eagles said they did not have impermissible contact with Barkley before signing him to a three-year, $37.75 million contract on Monday.

Barkley also denied the tampering on Thursday during his introductory press conference with the Eagles.

Did Eagles tamper with Saquon Barkley?

Both the Eagles and Barkley denied the tampering allegations.

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The issue came up after Penn State head football coach James Franklin suggested at his spring press conference on Tuesday that the running back spoke to Eagles general manager Howie Roseman as part of his decision-making process when he was about to become a free agent. Franklin coached Barkley during his three seasons with the Nittany Lions and said he also chatted with him last offseason when he had a standoff with the Giants before negotiating a one-year deal. Barkley hails from Coplay, Pennsylvania, which is about an hour north of Philadelphia.

“For him now to come back and be able to play within the state, in Philadelphia, he said that was one of the first things that Howie said to him on the phone as part of kind of his sales pitch to him ... not only the Philadelphia Eagles and that, but obviously the connection with Penn State and the fan bases as well," Franklin said.

If Barkley did, in fact, have a phone call with Roseman, it would be considered tampering ahead of NFL free agency. Per NFL rules, teams aren't allowed to have direct contact with players from other teams while negotiating contracts.

Saquon Barkley refutes tampering allegations

Barkley, on Thursday, said Franklin misunderstood and explained that it was his agent who relayed the Penn State connection.

“Coach Franklin, I think, misinterpreted it," Barkley said. "The truth is, the pitch, the sell, was Penn State and how many Penn State fans are Eagles fans. But that was through my agent. My agent told me that."

NFL tampering policy

The NFL created its tampering policy "to protect member clubs’ contract and negotiating rights, and, at thesame time, to allow the intra-League competitive systems devised for the acquisition and retention of player talent."

The basics are that teams can speak with players' representation two calendar days before their current contracts expire. That is called the "two-day negotiating period" and is why new deals can be announced before the official start of free agency.

The player cannot visit any team facilities other than the one he's currently signed to and "no direct contact is permitted between the player and any employee or representative of a club (other than his current club)." In the anti-tampering policy rule book, that quote is underlined for emphasis.

Contributing: Chris Bumbaca