The Falcons are preparing for the third divisional matchup in as many weeks as the club travels to Charlotte for a date with the Panthers, but I wanted to rant a little bit.
The club is coming off back-to-back NFC South victories over the Saints and Buccaneers in exhilarating fashion. Atlanta sits atop the division with a commanding lead, and the latest win was encouraging for a number of reasons.
The primary one was the offensive production. Kirk Cousins‘ four touchdown, 500-yard performance was the kind of stuff Falcons fans thought they were getting when the club signed the veteran to a $180 million deal this offseason.
Cousins had a career night, completing 42 of 58 passes for 509 yards with four touchdowns and one interception. Not only did he break his own personal best of 460 yards passing in a game, but the new Falcons quarterback also broke Matt Ryan’s franchise record for most yards in a game in front of him as he was inducted into the ring of honor.
The offense put up 36 points, winning in overtime thanks to a Younghoe Koo field goal, Jessie Bates III’s heroics, and KhaDarel Hodge‘s unlikely game-winning touchdown. It was a game that had a little bit of everything, but I have one gripe.
It has nothing to do with Falcons fans, but the Benz is not an environment that opposing teams fear to come to. Ever since Mercedes Benz Stadium was opened, the Falcons have lacked a home field advantage. This is just one example from 92.9 The Game’s Steak Shapiro:
Now, you can make a few excuses. It was a Thursday Night Football game, so getting to the Benz after work in Atlanta is obviously an obstacle, but the simple fact is I’ve been to enough games to know that this isn’t abnormal.
I went to the Sunday Night Football contest against the Chiefs, and the Benz was half filled, the same it always is for Falcons games. The empty half is always the same too — the lower level between the 20 yard lines, where the PSLs are astronomically high.
The Falcons will never have a true home field advantage because those seats are used half of the time, and even when the owners of those seats do come, they’re in the Delta lounge enjoying their free drinks and food. Even when they’re in their seats, a lot of them aren’t actually fans of the Falcons. It’s just an outing for them.
I was hopeful things would change with Raheem Morris, Kirk Cousins, an entertaining offense, and a winning product, but after these last few marquee matchups with the Chiefs, Saints, and Bucs, there’s nothing changing unless Arthur Blank stops advertising the cheap concession prices and actually does something about the lower level being a ghost town.
