The Atlanta Falcons had an attendance problem last year, and it was worse than the team let on publicly. The team's actual attendance was much lower than the figures announced by the club, per Michael David Smith of ProFootballTalk.com.
David Smith writes, “in the case of the 2018 Falcons, the actual attendance was well below the number of tickets sold: Although fans bought up tickets early in the year because they were expecting a third consecutive playoff season, as the team slumped to a losing record, there were tens of thousands of no-shows.”
The Falcons made the Super Bowl in 2016, then won a playoff game and came up one play short of the NFC Championship game in 2017, and hopes were high heading into last season. But they suffered a rash of injuries, particularly on defense, and finished the year 7-9.
It was a massive disappointment, and the Falcons ended up canning most of Dan Quinn's assistants as a result. Offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian was let go and was replaced by Dirk Koetter. Matt Ryan still put up big numbers, but the offense just wasn't the same and again struggled in the red-zone at times.
The team is sorely missing former offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan, who left to be the head coach of the 49ers. David Smith notes that “documents obtained by the stadium authority show that 60,626 fans attended the Falcons’ seventh home game, which had an announced attendance of 72,262. And only 56,470 fans attended the Falcons’ final home game, which had an announced attendance of 72,084.”
To put fans back in the seats, Atlanta needs to compete in a suddenly stacked NFC South next year. The Saints should be as good as ever, the Buccaneers made a big splash by hiring Bruce Arians, and the Panthers should be right there with a fully healthy Cam Newton. If the Falcons don't start winning and the stadium doesn't start getting filled, Quinn could find himself on the hot seat soon.
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