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Tucker Kraft has blunt message for booing Packers fans: 'We're grown men'
Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft. USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

Tucker Kraft has blunt message for booing Packers fans: 'We're grown men'

The Green Bay Packers left fans disappointed in their home opener at Lambeau Field on Thursday night in a 35-14 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. 

As a result, fans booed the Packers in a surprising scene, and it was at one point a 27-7 Falcons lead in the fourth quarter. 

Packers tight end Tucker Kraft had a harsh message for the fans after he heard the boos during the game. 

"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," Kraft said, via Matt Schneidman of The Athletic. "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."

Packers quarterback Jordan Love threw a pass to no-man's land at the end of the third quarter, and the broadcast showed boos coming from the crowd. 

Christian Watson says the Packers need to "play better" 

On the other hand, Packers wide receiver Christian Watson had the opposite message after hearing the crowd. 

“We gotta put a better product on the field if we want the fans to have our back," Watson said, via Karl Winter of WKOW 27. 

The Packers offense didn't show up, and the running game was nowhere to be seen. The defense also couldn't stop either Bijan Robinson or Drake London, and Michael Penix Jr. looked solid in his first start since suffering a torn ACL in Week 11. 

The Packers travel to Florida to face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 4, but they have another chance to impress the home crowd in Week 5 against the Chicago Bears in an NFC North rivalry showdown. 

Matt Wadleigh

Matt Wadleigh is based in California and born and raised in the San Diego area. He studied print journalism at Fresno State for college and got to watch Paul George, Derek Carr and Davante Adams play in a Bulldogs uniform. His work has been featured at ClutchPoints, Sportscasting, Sporting News, and various USA Today sites, including UCLA Wire, where he was the first managing editor

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