It seems the pending punishment for the Cleveland Browns and Atlanta Falcons for separate violations of league policies will go well beyond a simple slap on the wrist, according to a report from ESPN.
"Cleveland Browns and Atlanta Falcons officials were informed at this week's NFL owners meetings in Phoenix of the discipline they face for violating league policies," league sources told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.
"The discipline is expected to be announced next week, with one source saying it is expected to be 'severe.'"
As ESPN notes, the term "severe" is vague and could mean any number of potential outcomes for the two NFL franchises.
"'Severe' discipline in these cases could be a hefty fine, a loss of a draft pick or picks, or other penalties. But, as one source said Wednesday and others verified, 'it's coming soon.'"
The Browns penalties, of course, stem from GM Ray Farmer's ill-fated decision to send an impermissible text message to the Cleveland sidelines from the press box during a game this past season - a decision he owned up to this week at the NFL owners meetings in Phoenix.
"Farmer has not revealed who he texted, but sources and reports have said the texts went to an assistant coach and an unnamed team representative on the sideline and that the texts dealt with in-game strategy and use of personnel," ESPN reports.
Browns head coach Mike Pettine admitted that he wasn't happy with Farmer's decision to send the text - something that seemingly oversteps his bounds as GM - but said that the two men are moving forward from the issue.
"We both feel like we're very much on the same page and we're moving forward to make this team better," Pettine said.
The Falcons, on the other hand, admitted to piping artificial crowd noise into the Georgia Dome at various times over the past two seasons. Falcons owner Arthur Blank admitted doing so was the "wrong" choice and that it affected the competitive balance of games.
"Of course it bothers me," Blank told ESPN.com. "Absolutely it bothers me. We have great respect for the shield and the integrity of the game, the integrity of competition. So that bothers me a great deal. We will deal with it."
While the Falcons will face punishment, it seems based on their home record that the fake crowd noise may not have given them much of an advantage - they were 3-4 at home during the 2014 season and were 3-5 in 2013.
