Kansas City Chiefs general manager John Dorsey may have violated the NFL’s anti-tampering policy when he discussed a prospective trade for Falcons tight end Tony Gonzalez in a recent radio interview.
The league would not comment on the matter.
With the Falcons off to a 1-4 start and the Chiefs out of the gate at 5-0, the trade subject was broached. The Falcons acquired Gonzalez from the Chiefs in 2009. He returned this season to make another run at a Super Bowl ring before he retires.
According to the Kansas City Star, a radio show host asked Dorsey about Gonzalez’s trade value.
“I’d give him a spot up in that stadium one day,” Dorsey said, according the newspaper.
Asked if he would give up a draft pick, Dorsey said he values his picks. Pressed on whether that meant “no” to surrendering picks for Gonzalez, Dorsey’s response, according to the newspaper, was the following:
“No, it’s not a no. We have to analyze each situation. That’s kind of what that is.”
The NFL defines tampering as “any interference by a member club with the employer-employee relationship of another club or any attempt by a club to impermissibly induce a person to seek employment with that club or with the NFL.”
Tampering can be committed in a private or public comment.
The policy states that, “any public or private statement of interest, qualified or unqualified, in another club’s player to that player’s agent or representative, or to a member of the news media, is a violation of this Anti-Tampering Policy.”
The Falcons debunked the notion of trading Gonzalez.
Hawks owner Michael Gearon Jr. was fined by the NBA for similar comments about signing LeBron James back in 2010. The Hawks were again fined after a season-ticket representative sent a letter that contained similar mentions of the team attempting to acquire Dwight Howard and Chris Paul, who were set to become unrestricted free agents. The letter was sent via email on Hawks and Philips Arena letterhead.
The NFL’s trading deadline is Oct. 29.
Robiskie signed: The Falcons, reeling at wide receiver as injuries mount, signed Brian Robiskie, son of assistant head coach/wide receivers Terry Robiskie.
“It felt good being out here and being back,” Brian Robiskie said. “It felt really good to be playing again.”
The roster spot opened when the Falcons placed Julio Jones, who’s set to have foot surgery Monday, on injured reserve.
Robiskie, 25, was a second-round pick (39th overall) of the Browns in 2009 and played with Cleveland, Jacksonville and Detroit. He started 14 of the 37 games in which he played and has 43 catches for 485 yards and four touchdowns. He’s 6-foot-4 and 212 pounds.
“He knows our offense and knows our verbiage,” Falcons coach Mike Smith said. “We hope that we can get him up to speed in a very quick fashion and get him ready to go.”
After the first game of the season, the Falcons worked out wide receivers Courtney Roby, Lavelle Hawkins and Mohamed Massaquoi.
Practice report: Running back Steven Jackson (hamstring) and linebacker Akeem Dent (sprained right foot) attended the open portion of practice, but did not participate. Wide receivers Roddy White (hamstring/ankle) and Julio Jones (foot), left tackle Sam Baker (knee) did not attend the open portion of practice.
