Draft day always comes with a few trades, but one of the early swaps on Thursday night was an unusual one.
The Eagles moved up to the 66th overall pick, sending the 94th overall selection and a 2024 fifth-round pick to the Cardinals. It wasn't just an ordinary trade-up scenario, though. The deal was made to settle a tampering investigation into the Cardinals.
While the Cardinals turned two picks into one with the trade, the Eagles now have a pick near the top of the third round as they try to fill a few holes that opened up on the roster this offseason. On the other hand, a tumultuous offseason for Arizona just took another bizarre turn.
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Here's what you need to know about what led the Eagles and Cardinals to make this deal.
Why did the Eagles and Cardinals make a last-minute NFL Draft trade?
The Cardinals and Eagles released a joint statement Thursday explaining that they settled an "instance of impermissible contact by Arizona during its head coaching search."
Per the statement, the Cardinals self-reported a call to Jonathan Gannon following the NFC championship game. Because the Eagles were still in the playoffs, contact with Gannon wasn't legal.
Gannon, the Eagles' defensive coordinator at the time, was announced as the Cardinals' head coach two days after Philadelphia's Super Bowl 57 loss.
Joint statement from the #AZCardinals and #Eagles pic.twitter.com/tz1kzc8f42
— Mike Garafolo (@MikeGarafolo) April 27, 2023
Rather than the NFL punishing the Cardinals for a tampering violation, the trade acts as a settlement between the two clubs to put the matter to rest. That means Arizona won't face any consequences from the league.
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The NFL has convoluted rules regarding when and how a coach whose team is still in the playoffs can interview for a job. In certain cases, virtual interviews are allowed but in-person interviews must wait.
Tony Dungy proposed last year that the NFL outlaw head coaching interviews until after the Super Bowl to make the process fairer, but there's no indication such a drastic change to the hiring cycle is coming any time soon.
