Lions Star WR Hammers Atlanta Falcons ‘Terrible’ Fanbase

In a bit of a strange turn, the Atlanta Falcons caught flak from Amon-Ra St. Brown, a California born Detroit Lions receiver.

Amon Ra St. Brown (14) and the Detroit Lions came up short against the Atlanta Falcons in 2021 en route to an embarrassing 3-13-1 season. / Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

As of yesterday, the Atlanta Falcons sold out their season tickets for the 2024 NFL season despite six-straight losing seasons. But they also took a brutal verbal barrage from an unexpected NFL player. Two star wide receivers featured in Netflix’s TV Series ‘Receivers’ sat down on the Hot One’s Versus food challenge and discussed various NFL topics over scorching wings and sauces. 

You are probably wondering how and what exactly this has to do with the Falcons, but when Detroit Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown was questioned by Las Vegas wide receiver Davante Adams about the worst NFL fanbases, his initial answer was expected—the one that followed, not so much.

"I hate the Packers fans, just because it's Green Bay, I play for Detroit," said St. Brown. "But I think some of the worse fans was the Falcons. When we played them my rookie year (2021), no one was there. Terrible. Is there that much to do in Atlanta, I don't know, 'cuz ain't no body going to the game."

Las Vegas Raiders WR Davante Adams asks Detroit Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown about the worst NFL fanbases. Courtesy of @firstwefeast pic.twitter.com/fxQnjzbE3p

— CJ Errickson (@CJ_Errickson) July 31, 2024

Understandably, the Lions wide receiver would choose the Green Bay Packers as his top choice for the worst fanbase, as they are NFC North Rivals. However, choosing Atlanta as one of the worst fanbases? There is quite a bit to unpack in what St. Brown said.

Is the Falcons fanbase ‘terrible’ in support, worse than the Lions?  

The Lions drafted St. Brown in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. The 6’0, 200-pound receiver performed well in his rookie year, amassing 912 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns. However, his team went 3-13-1 compared to the Falcons’ 7-10.

So, when the two teams played on the day after Christmas in Atlanta, attendance may have been down, considering the day and the two teams' status. Furthermore, the Mercedes-Benz Stadium attendance for that 20-16 loss for the Lions was 68,638. This was also his only career matchup versus the Falcons.

The above attendance number is roughly 17,000 more than the Detroit Lions averaged in 2021 per ESPN. So for St. Brown to say that Falcon fans are ‘non-existent’ is quite the interesting assumption, considering his organization ranked dead last (32nd overall) in average attendance numbers in 2021. In comparison, the Falcons finished 15th overall. 

The bottom line is this: Amon-Ra’s statement is unfounded and, quite frankly, odd when you have fanbases like the Chicago Bears and Minnesota Vikings within your division. 

The California kid shows off his ignorance with is "is there that much to do in Atlanta?" question. Well, yeah. The day after Christmas, there is a lot to do in Atlanta. Watching a 2-11 team take on a 6-8 team speaks more about the product on the field for a Week 16 matchup between one bad and one awful team, than it does about the fans.

No one accuses the Lions of having poor support despite their dead-last finish in attendance in 2021, averaging 51,000 per game. That's a poorly attended spring football game in SEC country. The fans in Detroit and Atlanta weren't bad for not blindly supporting the product on the field in 2021.

They're not dumb either.