NFL responds to fake injury allegations at the Meadowlands. (Marianne O'Leary via Creative Commons)

The news comes two days after controversy ensued in the Monday Night Football contest between the New York Giants and the St. Louis Rams, when two Giants defenders allegedly dropped to the ground to stall the Rams no-huddle offensive drive.

Referees currently have no way to handle suspected occurrences of fake injuries, because putting such rules in place could compromise the safety of players who are truly hurt. However, teams can expect to face serious penalties from the league following this announcement, which is partially reprinted here:

"Should the league office determine that there is reasonable cause, all those suspected in being involved in faking injuries will be summoned promptly to this office in New York to discuss the matter. Those found to be violators will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action for conduct detrimental to the game. Discipline could include fines of coaches, players and clubs, suspensions or forfeiture of draft choices."

Teams have long accused their opponents of faking injuries, but few times has it been as obvious as this. In the video below, you can clearly see both Deon Grant and Jacquian Williams go down at the same time. Miraculously, Williams stands up within seconds while Grant remains down but returns to the game almost immediately.

The Giants have adamantly denied that the injuries were fake, claiming that both players happened to be hurt simultaneously. It seems pretty unlikely, though, that two athletes would decide they couldn't continue to play at exactly the same moment. Conveniently, that moment happened to come as their opponent's no-huddle offense approached the goal line.

What remains to be seen is whether or not the Giants will be summoned to the NFL offices to face repercussions for their actions. Most likely, however, the enforcement will only be put into effect going forward from this week.

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