The Falcons came into their Week 7 contest with a 4-2 record, coming off of three consecutive wins, with a highly entertaining offense, headlined by the club’s biggest acquisitions.
Free agent additions Kirk Cousins and Darnell Mooney, along with the club’s top 10 draft picks of Kyle Pitts, Drake London, and Bijan Robinson, are all exciting in different ways.
Everything is finally going Atlanta’s way. The Falcons are winning, and they are entertaining, but somehow, the club is still unable to fill Mercedes Benz Stadium. It’s a tired conversation, which is why I’m wondering if Arthur Blank is ever going to acknowledge the elephant in the room.
The Falcons haven’t had a true home-field advantage since the Georgia Dome, and the only time the Benz has ever been close to capacity is when national fan bases like the Packers, Steelers, and Cowboys are in attendance.
Even though the Falcons report “70,000” tickets sold, there are clearly not 70,000 seats filled. Winners of three straight with a chance to make it four in front of the home crowd, and there were at least 20,000 empty seats on Sunday.
Either Arthur Blank isn’t paying attention, or he just doesn’t care. The Falcons owner isn’t a dumb person; there’s no debating that point. So, the only reasonable conclusion is that he prefers the money coming in from PSLs more than he cares about making less money in exchange for a better home atmosphere.
Now, lower ticket prices would likely improve home-field attendance, but in that same breath, there’s a certain portion of the Falcons fan base that won’t show up unless the club is winning (and winning a lot). It’s a bandwagon fan base; however, I figured a 4-2 record with a home game at 1 pm on a beautiful Sunday with the roof open would result in a better atmosphere. It didn’t, and Arthur Blank must be taking notice.
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Photographer: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire
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