The Kansas City Chiefs face penalties and lose two draft picks after violating the NFL anti-tampering policy.
NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations Troy Vincent told Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt by letter that the club and individual employees had direct contact with Jeremy Maclin, according to NFL.com.
At the time, Maclin was a prospective unrestricted free agent under contact with the Philadelphia Eagles.
"Assessing discipline, the goal is to balance the seriousness of the violation of an important and longstanding competitive rule, with appropriate recognition of the club's history (no prior offenses), and the cooperation shown by both the club and individual employees," Vincent said in a statement, according to NFL.com.
The Chiefs lost its 2016 third-round draft pick and 2017 sixth-round draft pick for violating the NFL's Anti-Tampering Policy.
Coach Andy Reid has been fined $75,000 and general manager John Dorsey has been fined $25,000, NFL.com reports.
Maclin played under Reid in Philadelphia before signing a five-year, $55 million deal with the Chiefs on March 2015.
“While we respect Commissioner Goodell and the process, we believe that the penalties proposed in this case are inconsistent with discipline enforced in similar matters - particularly given the league's inconsistent communication of its policies on contact with potential free agents," Hunt said in a statement released on Wednesday.
“As an organization, we take great care to conduct ourselves with integrity and operate within the guidelines of the NFL. We have been fully cooperative and transparent with the league in this matter, and we are disappointed with the league’s decision,” Hunt said in a statement.
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