Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was clearly unhappy with what he described as an ongoing headset malfunction during Thursday night's season-opener, and suggested it was something that is "always the case" when he plays in Foxborough.
On Friday, the NFL released a statement regarding the matter, via NFL spokesman Michael Signora:
"Technological and stadium infrastructure issues of this type happen at many stadiums around the league and whenever there are issues of this nature, we do a thorough review."
Patriots head coach Bill Belichick also complained of headset issues as well, which were apparently exacerbated by the poor weather conditions. Signora mentioned this in a statement released on Thursday night, seeming to clear the Patriots of any blame in the matter.
With a second statement today, it sounds like the league is just letting everyone know that a standard review is protocol.
NFL Media's Albert Breer was told by an NFL spokesman that the audio interference was made worse by the weather.
"Based on our review to date, we believe that the audio interference on Steelers' headsets last night was entirely attributable to an electrical issue made worse by the inclement weather; that it involved no manipulation by any individual; and that the Patriots had nothing to do with it. The issue was promptly resolved and there were no further problems for the remainder of the game. We will continue to review the matter to determine if there are technical steps that can be taken to avoid similar problems from occurring in other games."
The Steelers released a statement saying the team does not plan to file a formal complaint about the issue:
"We have provided information to NFL representatives regarding issues that occurred Thursday night at Gillette Stadium with our coach-to-coach headset communications system. The problem was addressed during the game and we did not have further problems in the second half. We did not file a formal complaint, nor do we plan to do so."
