Green Bay Packers fans didn’t like what they saw on Thursday night. They reacted by booing.
Packers tight end Tucker Kraft didn’t like what he heard. He said so after the game.
Meeting with reporters on Monday, Kraft changed his tune. A bit.
“I’m not gonna add anymore to the booing,” Kraft said, via Kyle Malzhan of WFRV. “You know, in hindsight, we were out there on the field not doing the greatest. You know, we’re out there, busting our tails, trying to make every play come to life, one play at a time. That’s our mindset. I understand a lot of people spent time and resources to be there at the game. Wish it would have been a better outcome. Everyone in the locker room wished it would have been a better outcome. Like I said, when I was referring in the past to disappointment, I’m talking about from the day overall, not just from the fans. Obviously, the fans are out there, and Christian [Watson] put it the best, like, this is an entertainment business. We gotta go out there and put a better product on display. So, you know, people are happier when they’re heading to their cars after the game.”
Kraft’s overall reaction from the fans came from the fact that he’s as invested in the franchise as they are.
“The fans that really care about us and, you know, our roots in Green Bay,” Kraft said. “Like I consider myself a Wisconsinite at this point. Green Bay is the largest city I’ve ever lived in. I live here year-round, you know, and so I have, you know, just as much pride in stake in this team and organization [as] anyone else does. I take it personal. Every dig that the Packers get, you know, because this is my team. I love this team. So tuning out all that stuff, like I said, easy for me. I don’t take things personal. I understand. Emotions get people, and had we gone out there and flipped — we didn’t — but had we gone out there and flipped the score, people would have been saying emotional things to Atlanta Falcons. I don’t know. You know, it’s just a bunch of games of if, ands, or butts, and bottom line is, we gotta go out there and execute better.”
That’s the beauty of sports. For every game, there’s a winner and a loser. There are good teams and bad teams. Some fans are happy, other fans are pissed.
It’s the way it goes, every single year. Whether it’s “this is the year” or “wait ‘til next year,” half the fan bases are happy after a given game, and half the fan bases aren’t.
In the end, only one fan base is thrilled — and the other 31 are hoping that the ultimate thrill is only a year away.