NFL Thanksgiving Tradition: Lions, Cowboys, and a Century of Football History
DETROIT – As families gather for their annual Thanksgiving feasts, millions will tune in to watch the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys, a tradition as ingrained in the holiday as turkey and pumpkin pie. But how did these two franchises become Thanksgiving staples, and what other captivating facts define the NFL’s history on this uniquely American holiday?
The Lions’ Long-Standing Tradition
The Detroit Lions’ association with Thanksgiving dates back to 1934, when owner G.A. Richards sought to boost the team’s struggling attendance during the Great Depression. Richards, a radio executive, leveraged his connections to broadcast a game against the Portsmouth Spartans (later the Steelers) on Thanksgiving Day, offering free admission to fans who brought a bag of flour. The gamble paid off, drawing a crowd of over 26,000 and establishing a tradition that has continued, with only a few interruptions during World War II (1939-1944), for 85 years.
Dallas Joins the Feast
The Dallas Cowboys joined the Thanksgiving lineup in 1966, thanks to general manager Tex Schramm.Like Richards, Schramm aimed to increase the team’s visibility and fan base. The Cowboys’ inaugural Thanksgiving game against the cleveland Browns was a success, and they’ve played on the holiday almost every year since, becoming a fixture alongside the Lions.
Beyond Detroit and Dallas: A History of Thanksgiving Football
While the Lions and Cowboys dominate the modern Thanksgiving schedule, the NFL’s history with the holiday stretches back much further.
* Early Games: The first NFL game played on Thanksgiving was in 1920, between the Akron Pros and Canton Bulldogs.
* Chicago Rivalry: In 1923, the Chicago Bears and Chicago Cardinals faced off in an all-Windy City Thanksgiving game, with the Bears winning 3-0 at Cubs Park (later Wrigley Field).
* Unexpected teams: The New York Yankees (yes, the baseball team) played three Thanksgiving Day football games, winning in 1946 (21-7 over the Brooklyn Dodgers) and 1949.
* panthers’ Past: Though the Carolina Panthers franchise debuted on Thanksgiving in 2015 with a 33-14 win over Dallas, a team called the Detroit Panthers played on the holiday much earlier, losing 9-6 to the Los Angeles Buccaneers in 1926.
Recent Rivalries and Memorable Games
The Thanksgiving Day games have frequently enough featured intense rivalries and memorable moments. In 2014, the Seattle Seahawks overwhelmed the San Francisco 49ers 19-3 on thanksgiving in a rematch of the NFC Championship game from months prior.
Remembering John Madden
No discussion of Thanksgiving football is complete without acknowledging John Madden. The legendary broadcaster called 20 Thanksgiving games during his time at CBS and Fox, becoming synonymous with the holiday and the sport. He famously handed turkey legs to the game’s most valuable players and popularized the Turducken – a turkey stuffed with duck and chicken - bringing the New Orleans regional dish to national prominence.
“There’s no place that I would rather be today on Thanksgiving then right hear, right now, at a football game,” Madden once said at the Bears-Lions Thanksgiving game in 1997. “There are just certain things that go together: the turkey, the family, the tradition, football. … And we have it all today.”
