The Atlanta Falcons were just in the Super Bowl less than two years ago, but now they may be the least compelling team in their own stadium.
On the night of the NBA Draft, the Atlanta Hawks received high marks for their creativity. And after the fact and with a bit of buzz rolling, the people of the city may be waking up to the reality of the Atlanta Falcons now being the least intriguing professional sports franchise in the 404.
The Braves have the richest history of any franchise in Atlanta and it isn’t even close. The divisional dominance they showed in the 1990s was nothing short of amazing. The last decade has been mediocre at best, but they are currently sitting in first place in the National League East while also playing in the newest stadium in MLB.
If any fanbase has been itching to have something to watch while they knock out an after hours business deal, it is Braves’ fans. It is early yet, but they are positioning themselves to again fight for the attention of the Atlanta sports scene. And if they find themselves in contention as football season begins, this could get interesting.
Meanwhile, it may be an unreasonable stretch to claim that adding three rookies makes you an even slightly comparable version of a team like the Golden State that has effectively changed the way basketball is being played. But that is, in fact, what many across the country are doing in examining the Hawks’ draft results.
Clearly the Falcons have a distinct advantage here as it pertains to recent history, but given the cost of attendance and social savvy moves the Hawks have made recently like “Tinder Night”, they have consistently won over the millennial demographic in town.
In the other brand of football, Viking claps and ritual-style chants are just the beginning of an Atlanta United game experience. With attendance routinely in the 40,000 neighborhood, United have quickly become the most popular team in MLS and have even begun to outdraw teams from the Premier League.
They have also take the single-game attendance record for the MLS and cracked the top five in single-game attendance for any soccer game — anywhere. In only the second full season the team that shares “The Benz” as a home with the Falcons has developed quite a faithful following and may actually have the best shot at delivering Atlanta its first professional title since 1995.
Georgia is still, by and large a football (oblong version) state and Atlanta is very much becoming the epicenter of the college game. The Falcons’ Super Bowl run of 2016 still seems fresh in the minds of most fans — fresh like an open wound, not fresh like a breath of new air.
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Last year’s disappointing ending did nothing to strengthen the resolve of a fanbase that has been a long-suffering tribe. At some point, the increasing success of the other local teams will matter, grabbing more and more of the available attention and finite family cash, especially if the #Brotherhood can’t get over the hump and win the big one.
This year will be a significant one for the Falcons. Not only are they trying to yet again win the first NFL title in franchise history, but they are also trying to win the hearts and minds of a fanbase that suddenly has meaningful options outside of the NFL.