BSDs lost mindshare due to AT&T's litigation about the intellectual property of Unix.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNIX_System_Laboratories,_Inc.....

Linux filled in the gap left by the litigation.

I don't know how "cathedral-like" the development of the BSDs is / was (vs. the "bazaar" of Linux.) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Cathedral_and_the_Bazaar may have some relevance.