The NFL is allowing Rich McKay to hear the roar of the crowd again.
The Atlanta Falcons announced Thursday that McKay has been reinstated as chairman of the league's Competition Committee effective immediately. Commissioner Roger Goodell met with McKay in New York on Wednesday, per the team.
McKay was suspended from his committee duties on April 1 after a league investigation found the Falcons pumped phony crowd noise into the Georgia Dome. The NFL also fined the Falcons $350,000 and forfeited the club's fifth-round selection in the 2016 NFL Draft.Â
The league found former Falcons director of event marketing, Roddy White, directly responsible for the violation. McKay played no role in the team piping in crowd noise, the NFL explained in a March statement:
"Falcons ownership and senior executives, including team President Rich McKay, were unaware of Mr. White's use of an audio file with artificial crowd noise," the statement explained. "However, Mr. McKay, as the senior club executive overseeing game operations, bears some responsibility for ensuring that team employees comply with league rules."
