NFL exonerates Eagles in investigation into manipulation involving star running back

PHILADELPHIA – Saquon Barkley will cost the Eagles nothing except the money guaranteed by the three-year contract they offered the former New York Giants running back as a free agent after the NFL cleared Philly of any allegations of player tampering.

The league investigated the situation and found no wrongdoing. There was some talk that the NFL would try to make an example of the Eagles by giving them a third-day draft pick. That’s not going to happen now.

A statement released by the NFL said:

“After a thorough review of the Philadelphia Eagles’ signing of Saquon Barkley, the NFL informed the club today that the investigation did not reveal sufficient evidence of a violation of the anti-tampering policy.

“To reach this conclusion, the league reviewed phone transcripts, text messages and other documents related to Philadelphia’s free agency strategy and the decision to sign Barkley. The NFL also interviewed several members of the organization, including Howie Roseman and Nick Sirianni, as well as Barkley and Penn State head coach James Franklin. As with any review, the league may reopen the investigation if new evidence is uncovered.”

The investigation began after Barkley’s college coach at Penn State, James Franklin, suggested that Philly had spoken to the superstar runner during the negotiation phase of the Eagles’ recruiting process.

According to Mark Wogenrich, who covers Penn State for SI, Franklin said earlier this year that he had spoken to Barkley.

“(Barkley) said that was one of the first things Howie told him on the phone as part of his sales pitch,” Franklin said. “Not just the Philadelphia Eagles and that, but the connection to Penn State and the fan base. So just a really cool opportunity.”

Franklin attempted to backtrack, saying his comment had been “misinterpreted.”

“I had a 10-minute conversation with Saquon and I was just making assumptions and connections that weren’t there,” Franklin said. “All of those conversations went through his agent. And obviously I made a comment for three minutes that was misunderstood, but it certainly wasn’t the way it was portrayed.”

Barkley is expected to play an important role in the Eagles’ offense, which is extremely strong with strong receivers, tight ends and, of course, at the quarterback position with Jalen Hurts.

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