NFL Players Tickle Each Other Under The Pile

In his Ask Me Anything thread on Reddit today, former New York Giants running back Tiki Barber was asked if there was a single defensive player he actively avoided on the football field.

To that, Barber replied (emphasis ours):

"Jeremiah Trotter. We played each other so much and knew each other so well that when he hit me, he hit me hard. But he'd also help me up and sometimes tickle me under the pile."

In the NFL, when there's a fumble or run up the middle, football players pile onto each other and do whatever they can to get the loose ball or bring the runner down.

Dirty tactics like fish hooks and eye pokes are common practice in these pileups since the refs can't really see what's going on. But to hear about tickle fights in the pile is, well, interesting.

Unfortunately, Barber didn't reply to a follow-up question asking if tickling in the pile was a common occurrence in the NFL.