NEW YORK, NY — The National Football League announced today a groundbreaking rebrand of its annual 'legal tampering period,' officially renaming it the 'Openly Flirting With Other Teams While Your Current Team Watches' window. The move comes after decades of thinly veiled negotiations and a general consensus that the term 'legal tampering' was, at best, an ironic misnomer.

“Let’s be honest, we all know what’s going on,” stated NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in a press conference held entirely on a golf course. “Players are talking to agents, agents are talking to general managers, and general managers are definitely not just admiring each other’s golf swings. This new name simply reflects the transparent, albeit slightly awkward, reality of the situation.”

Team executives largely lauded the change, citing increased clarity. “It’s much easier to explain to our fans why we’re suddenly seen having lunch with a star receiver from a rival team,” commented Brenda Chen, General Manager of the fictional Cleveland River Hogs. “Before, we had to pretend we were just discussing the weather. Now, we can just say we’re openly flirting, which is technically legal.”

Sources close to the league suggest that future rule changes might include a 'Publicly Gazing Longingly At Free Agents' phase and a 'Pretending To Be Surprised When They Sign Elsewhere' clause.