We see your 12th Man, Seattle Seahawks, and raise you the 12th Man beta! According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Atlanta Falcons are being investigated by the NFL for "piping artificial crowd noise into their stadium the past two seasons." It is believed that while the opposing team was in the huddle, the Georgia Dome speakers would pump in additional sound, a tactic created by the team's game operations department.
Even though Schefter argues that the use of a silent count has been effective in countering the effects of crowd noise, the fact that this matter has been brought up to the league speaks volumes. No pun intended. If they are found guilty, the Falcons will most likely receive a fine and could even lose a draft pick.
It may sound like a hefty price to pay, but this type of stuff won't be tolerated and the NFL needs to make sure they get that message across loud and clear. Pun intended.
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[via Adam Schefter]
