NFL on Thanksgiving Day facts for kids

The NFL Thanksgiving logo used for 2016. The year changes every year!

Every year since 1920, the National Football League (NFL) has played exciting football games on Thanksgiving Day. This tradition started because college football teams often played around the holiday.

For many years, two teams have been the main hosts for these games: the Detroit Lions since 1934, and the Dallas Cowboys since 1966. Since 2006, a third game is played in the evening, but this game doesn't have fixed teams.

In 2022, the NFL started calling the Thanksgiving Day games the John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration. This was to honor the famous coach and TV announcer, John Madden, who passed away in 2021.

In 2023, the league added another game on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. Like the third Thanksgiving game, this one also features different teams each year.

History of Thanksgiving Football

Playing football on Thanksgiving Day is a very old tradition! It goes all the way back to 1876, not long after football was invented. People had the day off from work, so it was a great time for games.

Teams like Yale and Princeton started playing each other every Thanksgiving. The University of Michigan also had a tradition of Thanksgiving games from 1885 to 1905. Some people even say the games between Michigan and the Chicago Maroons in the 1890s were "The Beginning of Thanksgiving Day Football." Even today, many high school teams, especially in New England, play on Thanksgiving to finish their season.

When professional football began, playing on Thanksgiving was already a big deal. Records show pro football games on Thanksgiving as early as the 1890s. Early leagues, like the Ohio League, often had their biggest games on this day. For example, in 1905 and 1906, the Latrobe Athletic Association and Canton Bulldogs, two of the best teams, played on Thanksgiving. A problem with the Massillon Tigers in 1906 caused attendance to drop for the Bulldogs, and they stopped playing for a while.

Many other early NFL teams also played regularly on Thanksgiving. These included the Chicago Bears, Chicago Cardinals, Frankford Yellow Jackets, and New York Giants.

The first owner of the Detroit Lions, George A. Richards, started the Lions' Thanksgiving Day game tradition in 1934. He wanted to get more people to come to the games. He owned a radio station, WJR, and was able to get a deal with NBC to broadcast the Lions' Thanksgiving games all over the country. This made the Lions' game a special event.

During World War II, the NFL stopped scheduling Thanksgiving games from 1941 to 1944. When games started again in 1945, only the Lions' annual home game continued on Thanksgiving. From 1951 to 1963, the Green Bay Packers played the Lions every Thanksgiving.

In 1966, the Dallas Cowboys also started hosting Thanksgiving games. They wanted to have something exciting for people to do and watch on that day. For a couple of years (1975 and 1977), the St. Louis Cardinals hosted instead of the Cowboys. But the Cardinals weren't as popular, and their games didn't draw big crowds. So, in 1978, the Cowboys returned as hosts and have played every Thanksgiving since then.

Since 1978, the Lions play the early game, and the Cowboys play the late afternoon game. For a long time, one game was between two NFC teams, and the other was between an AFC and an NFC team. This was to make sure both TV networks (CBS and Fox) got a game.

In 1997, the Salvation Army began its Christmas Kettle fundraising campaign during halftime of the Dallas game.

Since 2006, a third NFL game has been played in the evening on Thanksgiving. This game is shown on NBC and features different teams each year. Often, these night games are between teams from the same division, making for exciting rivalries!

On November 11, 2022, the league announced that the Thanksgiving games would be called the "John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration." This honors the late coach and broadcaster John Madden, who called 20 Thanksgiving games during his career.

Throwback Uniforms

Sometimes, teams playing on Thanksgiving wear special "throwback" uniforms. These uniforms look like ones the teams wore in the past.

The Cowboys have worn throwback jerseys from the 1990s and 1960s. In 2013, they couldn't wear their 1960s throwbacks because of a new rule about helmets, but they brought them back in 2022 when the rule changed.

The Detroit Lions have also worn throwback uniforms based on their early years many times.

Memorable Games

• 1921: The Chicago Staleys lost to the Buffalo All-Americans. The Staleys wanted a rematch, which they won. This game later caused a big argument about who won the championship that year!
• 1929: Ernie Nevers of the Chicago Cardinals scored an amazing 40 points against the Chicago Bears. This NFL record still stands today!
• 1952: The Dallas Texans were a winless team, but they surprised everyone! They beat the Chicago Bears 27-23 for their only win of the season. The Bears had sent their second-string team, thinking it would be an easy win.
• 1962: The Detroit Lions beat the undefeated Green Bay Packers 26-14. This game was called the "Thanksgiving Day Massacre" because the Lions' defense was so strong, sacking Packers quarterback Bart Starr 11 times!
• 1969: In a snowy game, the Minnesota Vikings shut out the Lions 27-0. A cool play happened when Jim Marshall intercepted a pass and lateraled (threw it sideways) to Alan Page, who ran it in for a touchdown!
• 1974: Dallas Cowboys backup quarterback Clint Longley came into the game when star quarterback Roger Staubach was hurt. Longley led the Cowboys to an amazing 24-23 comeback win over the Washington Redskins with two long passes!
• 1976: O. J. Simpson of the Buffalo Bills set an NFL record for most rushing yards in a single game with 273. Even with this amazing performance, the Lions still won the game 27-14.
• 1980: The game between the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears went into overtime. Bears running back Dave Williams returned the opening kickoff of overtime 95 yards for a game-winning touchdown. This was the shortest overtime period in NFL history at just 13 seconds!
• 1993: In a very famous game, the Dallas Cowboys were leading the Miami Dolphins in a sleet storm. The Dolphins tried a game-winning field goal, which was blocked. But a Cowboys player, Leon Lett, accidentally touched the ball, making it live again! The Dolphins recovered it and kicked a shorter field goal to win 16-14.
• 1994: With star quarterback Troy Aikman injured, third-string quarterback Jason Garrett had to start for the Cowboys against the Packers. The Cowboys won a high-scoring game 42-31 against Brett Favre's Packers.
• 1998: A coin toss controversy happened in the game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Detroit Lions. The Steelers player called "Heads" and "Tails" at the same time, and the referee made a confusing call. The Lions won the toss and kicked a field goal to win 19-16 in overtime. After this, the NFL changed the rules for coin tosses to make them clearer.
• 2012: The prime time game became famous for the "Butt fumble"! New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez ran into one of his own offensive linemen, fumbled the ball, and the New England Patriots returned it for a touchdown. It was a very unusual play!
• 2013: Steelers coach Mike Tomlin caused a stir when he stood too close to the field during a kick return. He appeared to get in the way of the Ravens' Jacoby Jones, who was running for a potential touchdown. The NFL later fined Tomlin $100,000 for his actions.
• 2022: The Buffalo Bills beat the Detroit Lions 28-25 in a very close game. The Bills won with a game-winning field goal by Tyler Bass with only two seconds left!

Broadcasting the Games

The first network to show Thanksgiving NFL games on TV was DuMont in 1953. CBS took over in 1956. In 1965, the Thanksgiving game between the Lions and the Baltimore Colts was the first NFL game ever shown in color!

Since 2006, three games are played on Thanksgiving. CBS and Fox share the afternoon games, and NBC shows the night game. The first game (Lions) usually starts at 12:30 p.m. EST, and the second game (Cowboys) starts at 4:30 p.m. EST. This helps make sure the games don't overlap too much.

Westwood One broadcasts all three games on national radio. Teams also have their own local radio stations that air the games.

The Cowboys' Thanksgiving game is usually the most-watched NFL regular season game every year! The Lions' game is also very popular.

Game Results

(Winning teams are shown in bold; tie games are italicized.)

1920–1940

• Early football leagues also played Thanksgiving games.
• Some games in 1920 included non-league teams.
• Thanksgiving used to be on different Thursdays in November before 1945.

1945–1959

• No Thanksgiving games were played from 1941 to 1944 because of World War II.
• From 1945 onwards, Thanksgiving games have always been played on the fourth Thursday in November.
• The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) also played Thanksgiving games from 1946 to 1949.

1960–1969

• The American Football League (AFL) also played Thanksgiving Day games during this time.
• The Dallas Cowboys started their traditional games in 1966.

1970–2005

• From 1970 to 2005, two games were played every Thanksgiving. The Lions hosted the early game, and the Cowboys hosted the late game.
• The Dallas game was moved to 4:15 p.m. EST in 1998 to help avoid overlapping with the early game.
• The St. Louis Cardinals replaced Dallas as a host in 1975 and 1977. But because of other local football games and less fan support, Dallas returned as host in 1978 and has been ever since.

2006–Present

• Since 2006, three games are played on Thanksgiving. The third game is played at night and hosted by a different team each year.
• In 2012, the Dallas game's kickoff time moved to 4:30 p.m. EST.
• Since 2023, a game has also been played on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.

Team Records on Thanksgiving

This table shows how current NFL teams have performed in Thanksgiving games. It includes games from the American Football League (AFL), but not the All-America Football Conference (AAFC).

Teams That Haven't Played Recently

The Jacksonville Jaguars, who joined the NFL in 1995, are the only current team that has never played on Thanksgiving.

For a while, teams from the AFC North (like the Steelers or Ravens) couldn't play in the afternoon Thanksgiving games. They could only play in the night game. This was due to old TV rules. Even though the rules changed in 2014, an AFC North team still hasn't played in an afternoon Thanksgiving game.

The Los Angeles Rams have the longest break from playing on Thanksgiving. Their last game was in 1975.

Recently, many teams have played on Thanksgiving for the first time or after a long break. These include New Orleans, Cincinnati, Baltimore, Houston, and Carolina. The 49ers played in 2011, their first Thanksgiving game since 1972! The Los Angeles Chargers played in 2017, their first time as an NFL team on Thanksgiving since 1969.

Thanksgiving Day Awards

Since 1989, TV networks have given out fun awards for the "Most Valuable Player" (MVP) of the Thanksgiving games. These awards are often informal and sometimes silly!

Turkey Leg Award (CBS & Fox)

In 1989, famous announcer John Madden started the "Turkey Leg Award" on CBS. It was an actual cooked turkey leg! Players would often take a bite out of it on camera. This award became very popular. Madden brought the award with him to Fox in 1994, and it continued until 2001.

Sometimes, more than one player would get the award. In 1994, players from both teams even received it!

Later Fox Awards

When John Madden left Fox in 2001, the network created a new award called the Galloping Gobbler. It was a small silver statue of a cartoon turkey. In 2002, Emmitt Smith famously threw his award in the trash because he didn't like how it looked!

In 2007, the statue changed to a bronze-colored turkey. In 2011, they stopped using statues and gave out a special plaque instead. In 2016, two players shared the award.

In 2017, the Galloping Gobbler was replaced by the "Game Ball," a fancy football-shaped trophy. For 2019–2020, Fox even gave out a WWE Championship Belt! The "Game Ball" returned in 2021.

All-Iron Award (CBS)

When NFL games returned to CBS in 1998, they started their own award called the "All-Iron Award." It was a small silver iron, a nod to announcer Phil Simms' "All-Iron team" for tough players. The winner also got a skillet of blackberry cobbler made by Simms' mother!

At first, only one player won each year. But from 2008 to 2013, Simms often gave the award to several players, saying it was "too close to call."

In 2017, Simms was replaced by Tony Romo, and the "All-Iron Award" was no longer given. Instead, the "Chevrolet Player of the Game" award was used. Chevrolet donates money in the player's name to charity, like the United Way or the Salvation Army.

In 2019, CBS brought back the Turkey Leg Award!

Prime Time Game Awards (NFLN & NBC)

From 2007 to 2011, the NFL Network gave out the "Pudding Pie Award" for the MVP of the night game. It was an actual pie!

NBC started showing the prime time game in 2012 and added an MVP award. From 2012 to 2015, it was called the "Madden Thanksgiving Player-of-the-Game" to honor John Madden. Since 2016, it's called the Sunday Night Football on Thanksgiving Night Player of the Game. This award is usually given to multiple players on the winning team. They receive ceremonial game balls and, as a tribute to Madden, a cooked turkey leg! In 2021, a turkey leg statue was also given.

Madden Player of the Game (2022–Present)

As part of the "John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration" starting in 2022, each TV network now chooses a "Madden Player of the Game." The NFL Foundation donates $10,000 in the winner's name to a youth or high school football program of their choice. Cooked turkey legs are still given to the players to honor Madden!

Complete List of MVPs

• 2007: Some of the Cowboys defense players who were noted include Chris Canty, DeMarcus Ware, Terence Newman and Greg Ellis.
• 2017: No official CBS award was given. Philip Rivers and Keenan Allen (both from the Chargers) were interviewed after the game.
• 2018: No official CBS award was given. Chase Daniel (from the Bears) was interviewed after the game.
• 2020: The CBS award was sent to Deshaun Watson's home because of the pandemic.
• 2020: No NBC prime time game was played because of a COVID-19 outbreak.

Images for kids

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  The Detroit Lions, seen here during the 2007 Thanksgiving game against their division rival Green Bay Packers, have played on Thanksgiving since 1934.