Atlanta Falcons Lose Draft Pick and Fined For Fake Crowd Noise

The NFL has released a statement regarding punishment to the Atlanta Falcons franchise for pumping artifical noise into their stadium during games.

NFL executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent announced Monday that the Falcons will lose a 2016 fifth-round pick, and be fined $350,000. The lone culprit for the scheme was former Falcons director of event marketing Roddy White.

Vincent’s statement says White “was directly responsible for the violation,” and “would have been suspended without pay for the first eight weeks of the 2015 regular season had he still been with the club.” It adds that if White gets another job in the league, he “may be required to serve some or all of this suspension.”

White was fired by the Falcons two weeks ago, and a league source says it was because of this incident, which seemed apparent.

Falcons president Rich McKay was not aware of the violation, but he’s still suspended from the league’s competition committee beginning April 1. He can apply for reinstatement after June 30.