AP

The Chiefs’ pursuit of wide receiver Jeremy Maclin in free agency last year has proven to be costly.

The NFL announced today that the Chiefs were found to have tampered with Maclin while he was still under contract with the Eagles. As a result, the Chiefs have been docked their third-round pick in this year’s draft and their sixth-round pick in next year’s draft. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid was individually fined $75,000 and General Manager John Dorsey was fined $25,000, and the Chiefs as an organization were fined $250,000.

NFL Executive Vice President of Football Operations Troy Vincent imposed the penalty for improper contact with Maclin, who ended up leaving the Eagles and signing with the Chiefs.

Vincent said the Chiefs clearly violated league rules, although he noted that the punishment could have been more severe were it not for the fact that the Chiefs have never previously violated such a rule, and that the Chiefs fully cooperated with the league’s investigation. The Chiefs gave league staff “full access to all of the information requested, including electronic and telephone records, and unrestricted access to all club people whom we sought to interview,” an NFL statement said.

The Chiefs have five days to file their appeal.