The Green Bay Packers‘ first home game of the 2026 season ended with boos raining down at Lambeau Field and one of their offensive leaders making it clear he wasn’t thrilled about hearing them.
Atlanta beat Green Bay 35-14 Thursday, dropping the Packers to 1-2 for the first time in Matt LaFleur’s tenure. The frustration from the crowd started before halftime and continued as the Falcons pulled away.
Afterward, tight end Tucker Kraft didn’t hide how he felt about it, as was reported by The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman.
Tucker Kraft Pushes Back on Packers Fans After Boos
“That’s pretty tough. Like everyone pictures Lambeau Field and not boos. I don’t picture boos. I picture my home stadium. That’s tough. It’s pretty disappointing, especially for a home opener. It’s pretty disappointing. It’s not going to help us win. Like I don’t know what people think that’s going to rally us or something like that. But that’s — we’re grown men. We’re mentally strong enough, capable enough to get back on the field and play ball. But it’d probably much easier with the 70,000 people behind us rather than opposing us.”
Kraft’s frustration came after a night in which the Packers gave their fans plenty to be unhappy about.
Green Bay scored first on Jordan Love’s touchdown pass to Christian Watson, but Atlanta answered with 27 consecutive points. The Packers trailed 17-7 at halftime after managing only 108 total yards and 12 rushing yards through two quarters.
The boos followed them toward the locker room.
Atlanta stretched the lead to 24-7 in the third quarter and ultimately finished with 498 total yards, including 244 on the ground. Green Bay ran the ball only nine times for 17 yards.
Kraft caught three passes for 23 yards. He had a 6-yard reception on Green Bay’s opening possession but was largely quiet afterward as the Packers spent most of the night playing from behind.
Packers Hit New Low in Home Opener
The loss also broke new ground under LaFleur.
Schneidman noted after the game that the 21-point margin was the largest home loss of LaFleur’s eight seasons as Packers head coach. Green Bay had also never started 1-2 under him before Thursday.
That helps explain the reaction inside Lambeau.
The Packers entered the night coming off a 20-17 overtime victory against the New York Jets, but their offense had already struggled to find consistency through the opening two games. Against Atlanta, those issues became much harder for the home crowd to ignore.
Love attempted 53 passes while Green Bay called only nine rushing attempts. He finished with 312 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, with Matthew Golden and Watson accounting for 196 receiving yards and both scores.
Atlanta controlled most of the night. Bijan Robinson rushed for 194 yards and two touchdowns, Michael Penix Jr. threw for 256 yards and the Falcons possessed the ball for more than 37 minutes.
It was hardly the Lambeau home opener Kraft or the fans had pictured.
Kraft didn’t suggest the players were incapable of handling criticism. He specifically noted Green Bay’s players are “grown men” and mentally capable of getting back on the field.
His point was where that criticism was coming from.
Lambeau Field is supposed to be the Packers’ biggest advantage. On Thursday, it felt anything but.
Packers’ Tucker Kraft Sends Message to Booing Fans After Falcons Loss