NFL on Thanksgiving Day
Since its inception in 1920, the National Football League has played games on Thanksgiving Day, patterned upon the historic playing of college football games on and around the Thanksgiving holiday.
The NFL's Thanksgiving Day games have traditionally included one game hosted by the Detroit Lions since 1934, and one game hosted by the Dallas Cowboys since 1966. Since the league introduced games on Thursday evenings in 2006, a third prime time game has also been played on Thanksgiving. Unlike the afternoon games, this game has no fixed host and has featured different teams annually; the prime time game has been contested almost solely by division rivals since 2012.
History
The concept of American football games being played on Thanksgiving Day dates back to 1876, shortly after the game had been invented, as it was a day that most people had off from work. In that year, the college football teams at Yale and Princeton began an annual tradition of playing each other on Thanksgiving Day. The University of Michigan also made it a tradition to play annual Thanksgiving games, holding 19 such games from 1885 to 1905. The Thanksgiving Day games between Michigan and the Chicago Maroons in the 1890s have been cited as "The Beginning of Thanksgiving Day Football." In some areas, most commonly in New England, high-school teams play on Thanksgiving, usually to wrap-up the regular-season.By the time football had become a professional event, playing on Thanksgiving had already become an institution. Records of pro football being played on Thanksgiving date back to as early as the 1890s, with the first pro–am team, the Allegheny Athletic Association of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1902, the "National" Football League, a Major League Baseball-backed organization based entirely in Pennsylvania and unrelated to the current NFL, attempted to settle its championship over Thanksgiving weekend; after the game ended in a tie, eventually all three teams in the league claimed to have won the title. Members of the Ohio League, during its early years, usually placed their marquee matchups on Thanksgiving Day. For instance, in 1905 and 1906 the Latrobe Athletic Association and Canton Bulldogs, considered at the time to be two of the best teams in professional football, played on Thanksgiving. A rigging scandal with the Tigers leading up to the 1906 game led to severe drops in attendance for the Bulldogs and ultimately led to their suspension of operations. During the 1910s, the Ohio League stopped holding Thanksgiving games because many of its players coached high school teams and were unavailable. This was not the case in other regional circuits: in 1919, the New York Pro Football League featured a Thanksgiving matchup between the Buffalo Prospects and the Rochester Jeffersons. The game ended in a scoreless tie, leading to a rematch the next Sunday for the league championship.
, seen here during the 2007 Thanksgiving game against their division rival Green Bay Packers, have played on Thanksgiving since 1934.Several other NFL teams played regularly on Thanksgiving in the first eighteen years of the league, including the Chicago Bears and Chicago Cardinals, Frankford Yellow Jackets, Pottsville Maroons, Buffalo All-Americans, Canton Bulldogs, and the New York Giants. The first owner of the Lions, George A. Richards, started the tradition of the Thanksgiving Day game as a gimmick to get people to go to Lions football games, and to continue a tradition begun by the city's previous NFL teams. What differentiated the Lions' efforts from other teams that played on the holiday was that Richards owned radio station WJR, a major affiliate of the NBC Blue Network ; he was able to negotiate an agreement with NBC to carry his Thanksgiving games live across the network.
During the Franksgiving controversy in 1939 and 1940, the only two teams to play the game were the Pittsburgh Steelers and Philadelphia Eagles, as both teams were in the same state. Because of the looming World War II and the resulting shorter seasons, the NFL did not schedule any Thanksgiving games in 1941, nor did it schedule any in the subsequent years until the war ended in 1945. When the Thanksgiving games resumed in 1945, only the Lions' annual home game would remain on the Thanksgiving holiday. In 1951, the Packers began a thirteen-season run as the perpetual opponent to the Lions each year through 1963.
The All-America Football Conference and American Football League, both of which would later be absorbed into the NFL, also held Thanksgiving contests, although neither of those leagues had permanent hosts. Likewise, the AFL of 1926 also played two Thanksgiving games in its lone season of existence, while the AFL of 1936 hosted one in its first season, which featured the Cleveland Rams, a future NFL team, and the 1940–41 incarnation of the American Football League played two games in 1940 on the earlier "Franksgiving" date.
In 1966, the Dallas Cowboys, who had been founded six years earlier, adopted the practice of hosting Thanksgiving games. It is widely rumored that the Cowboys sought a guarantee that they would regularly host Thanksgiving games as a condition of their very first one. This is only partly true; Dallas had in fact decided to host games on Thanksgiving by their own decision because there was nothing else to do or watch on that day. In 1975 and 1977, at the behest of then-Commissioner Pete Rozelle, the St. Louis Cardinals replaced Dallas as a host team. Although the Cardinals, at the time known as the "Cardiac Cards" due to their propensity for winning very close games, were a modest success at the time, they were nowhere near as popular nationwide as the Cowboys, who were regular Super Bowl contenders during this era. This, combined with St. Louis's consistently weak attendance, a series of ugly Cardinals losses in the three-game stretch, and opposition from the Kirkwood–Webster Groves Turkey Day Game led to Dallas resuming regular hosting duties in 1978; it was then, after Rozelle asked Dallas to resume hosting Thanksgiving games, that the Cowboys requested an agreement guaranteeing the Cowboys a spot on Thanksgiving Day forever.
Since 1978, Thanksgiving games have been hosted in Detroit and Dallas every year, with Detroit in the early time slot and Dallas in the late afternoon slot. Because of TV network commitments in place through the 2013 season, to make sure that both the AFC-carrying network and the NFC-carrying network got at least one game each, one of these games was between NFC opponents, and one featured AFC-NFC opponents. Thus, the AFC could showcase only one team on Thanksgiving, and the AFC team was always the visiting team.
Since 2006, a third NFL game on Thanksgiving has been played in primetime. It originally aired on the NFL Network as part of its Thursday Night Football package until 2011; in 2012, the game was moved to NBC as part of its Sunday Night Football package. The night game never had any conference tie-ins, meaning the league could place any game into the time slot; since NBC took over the game in 2012, each night game has featured two teams in the same division. In 2014, [|a series of changes to the broadcast contracts] freed CBS from its obligation to carry an AFC team; by 2018, the last vestiges of conference ties to the Thanksgiving games were eliminated.
Throwback uniforms
Since teams playing on Thanksgiving have worn throwback uniforms on numerous occasions. In some years, it extended to nearly all games of the weekend, and in some cases also involved classic field logos at the respective stadiums.From 2001 to 2003, Dallas chose to represent the 1990s Cowboys dynasty by wearing the navy "Double-Star" jersey not seen since 1995. In, the team wore uniforms not seen since. In 2009, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the AFL, both Dallas and Oakland played in a "AFL Legacy Game." In 2013, the Cowboys intended to wear their 1960s throwbacks, but chose not to do so after the NFL adopted a new policy requiring players and teams to utilize only one helmet a season to address the league's new concussion protocol; rather than sport an incomplete throwback look, the Cowboys instead wore their standard blue jerseys at home for the first time since 1963. In 2015, the Cowboys resurrected their 1994 white "Double-Star" jerseys only this time wore them with white pants as part of the league's Color Rush, a trial run of specially-designed, monochromatic jerseys to be worn during Thursday games.
In 2001–2004, and again in 2008, 2010, 2017, and 2018 the Detroit Lions have worn throwback uniforms based on their very early years. For 2019, Detroit wore its silver Color Rush uniforms.
Memorable games
- 1920: An urban legend states that the Chicago Tigers and Decatur Staleys challenged each other to a Thanksgiving duel, in Chicago, in the league's inaugural season, with the loser being relegated out of the league at the end of the season, purportedly explaining why the Tigers were the only NFL team to fold after the 1920 season. The claims of it being a duel are unsubstantiated; nevertheless, the Tigers, after a 27–0 win over the non-league Thorn Tornadoes the next week, never played football again. The Staleys would move to Chicago during the next season, later renaming themselves the Bears.
- 1921: In a matchup of two of the league's best teams, the Staleys lose to the Buffalo All-Americans at home. The Staleys demand a rematch, with Buffalo agreeing to a December match only on the terms of it being considered an off-the-record exhibition game. That later match, which Chicago won, ended up counting despite the All-Americans' insistence, controversially handing Chicago the championship.
- 1952: The Dallas Texans are forced to move their lone remaining home game to the Rubber Bowl in Akron, Ohio as the undercard to a high school football contest. Their opponent for that game, the Chicago Bears, underestimated the then-winless Texans and sent their second string team to the game; the Texans scored a 27–23 upset over the Bears for their only win of their existence.
- 1962: The Lions handed the 10–0 Green Bay Packers their lone defeat of the season. The game was dubbed the "Thanksgiving Day Massacre" due to the dominant performance by the Lions defense, who sacked Bart Starr 11 times.
- 1964–65: The 1964 and 1965 AFL contests featured the Buffalo Bills and the San Diego Chargers, the two teams that would eventually meet in those years' American Football League Championship Games.
- 1974: Unknown Cowboys backup quarterback Clint Longley took over for an injured Roger Staubach with the team down 16–3 and rallied them to an improbable victory over Washington on two deep passes.
- 1976: The Bills offense put forth one of the best and the worst performances in Thanksgiving history. O. J. Simpson set the NFL record for most rushing yards in a single game, with 273. However, Bills backup quarterback Gary Marangi completed only 4 of 21 pass attempts, for 29 yards passing, and a rating of 19.7. The Lions defeated the Bills 27–14.
- 1980: With the Lions and Bears tied 17-17 at the end of regulation, the game went to overtime, the first Thanksgiving game to do so, and the first overtime game at the Silverdome. Bears running back Dave Williams returned the fifth-quarter opening kickoff 95 yards for a game-winning touchdown, ending the shortest overtime period in NFL history at the time.
- 1986: The Lions and the Packers had the second-highest scoring game in Thanksgiving history. It was the best day of receiver Walter Stanley's career; Stanley netted 207 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns, including an 83-yard punt return to win the game for Green Bay, 44–40. Stanley had an otherwise undistinguished career in the NFL.
- 1989: Known as the "Bounty Bowl", the Eagles crushed the Cowboys by a score of 27–0. Allegations surfaced that the Eagles had placed a bounty on the Cowboys kicker, thus becoming the first of a string of three bitterly contested games between the two teams, the other two being Bounty Bowl II and the Porkchop Bowl a year later.
- 1993: In one of the more famous Thanksgiving Day games in recent history, the Cowboys led the Dolphins 14–13 with just seconds remaining in a rare, snow-filled Texas Stadium. Miami's Pete Stoyanovich attempted a game winning 40-yard field goal that was blocked by the Cowboys' Jimmie Jones. Dick Enberg proclaimed "The Cowboys will win." Indeed, since the kick landed beyond the line of scrimmage, once the ball stopped moving the play would be declared dead and Dallas would gain possession. However, the ball landed and began spinning on its tip, leading Cowboys lineman Leon Lett to try to gain possession. Lett slipped, fell, and knocked the ball forward. By rule, the ball was live and the Dolphins fell on it at the two yard line. With the recovery, Stoyanovich got a second chance to win the game and hit the much shorter field goal. The Dolphins won 16–14.
- 1994: Troy Aikman was injured and third-string quarterback Jason Garrett was forced to start for Dallas against the Green Bay Packers. The Cowboys won a 42–31 shoot-out against Brett Favre.
- 1998: In another controversial Thanksgiving Day game, the Steelers and Lions went to overtime tied 16–16. Pittsburgh's Jerome Bettis called the coin toss in the air, but head referee Phil Luckett awarded Detroit the ball after Bettis tried to call both heads and tails at the same time. The Lions went on to kick a field goal on the first possession, winning 19–16. As a result of the fiasco, team captains are now required to call the coin toss before the coin is tossed, and a later rule change now prevents teams from automatically winning a game by scoring a field goal on the first possession. The day also saw a memorable performance by the Minnesota Vikings in a 46–36 win over the Dallas Cowboys as Vikings rookie Randy Moss caught three touchdowns, all of over 50 yards.
- 2008: The 10–1 Titans routed the 0–11 Lions by a score of 47–10, one of the most lopsided results in history on Thanksgiving. The Lions would go on to finish the season 0–16, clinching the 33rd winless season in NFL history, and the first under the 16-game schedule.
- 2011: The trio of games was lauded as one of the better Thanksgiving Day slates of games in NFL history. The night game between Baltimore and San Francisco pitted head coaches and brothers John and Jim Harbaugh against each other – a preview of Super Bowl XLVII.
- 2012: The prime time contest became infamous for the "Butt fumble", an incident in which Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez ran headfirst into the buttocks of his own offensive lineman. He subsequently fumbled the ball; it was recovered by New England, who returned it for a touchdown. In the earlier game, one of the NFL's most infamous rule changes came when former Lions coach Jim Schwartz challenged a play in which Texans running back Justin Forsett's knee clearly touched the ground before sprinting for an 81-yard touchdown. Referee Walt Coleman stated that, by rule, scoring plays are automatically reviewed and the play was not challengeable by a coach. Because of the improperly attempted challenge, the review was cancelled and Coleman assessed a 15-yard kickoff penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct. The NFL then passed a new rule that stated that if a coach attempted to challenge a play that is automatically reviewed, the review would continue. It was called the 'Jim Schwartz rule'.
Home team controversy
The host issue came to a head in 2008, focusing particularly on the winless Lions. Going into the game, Detroit had lost their last four Thanksgiving games, and opinions amongst the media had suggested removing Detroit and replacing them with a more attractive matchup. The team also required an extension to prevent a local television blackout. The Lions were routed by Tennessee 47–10, en route to the team's 0–16 season. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell confirmed that the Lions would stay on Thanksgiving for the 2009 season, but kept the issue open to revisit in the future.
Conversely, the Dallas Cowboys, who typically represent a larger television draw, have had many fewer public calls to be replaced on Thanksgiving. One issue that has been debated is a perceived unfair advantage of playing at home on Thanksgiving. The advantage is given in the form of an extra day of practice for the home team while the road team has to travel to the game site. This is true for most Thursday games, but with the night games, the visitor can travel to the game site after practice and hold the final walk-thru the following morning.
With the introduction of the prime time game, which effectively allows all teams in the league an opportunity to play on Thanksgiving, along with the introduction of year-long Thursday Night Football ensuring all teams have one Thursday game during the regular season, the calls for Detroit and Dallas to be removed have curtailed.
Game results
1920–1940
- All three of the generally recognized iterations of the American Football League that played during this era played Thanksgiving games, which are also listed as indicated.
- Non-NFL team games between league teams and non league teams counted in the 1920 standings. The All-Tonawanda Lumberjacks later joined the league as the Tonawanda Kardex, albeit only for one game.
- Thanksgiving fell on the final Thursday in November until 1938 and was held on two conflicting days from 1939 to 1941.
| Season | Visiting Team | Score | Home Team | Score |
| November 25, 1920 | Canton Bulldogs | 0 | Akron Pros | 7 |
| November 25, 1920 | Decatur Staleys | 6 | Chicago Tigers | 0 |
| November 25, 1920 | Detroit Heralds | 0 | Dayton Triangles | 28 |
| November 25, 1920 | Columbus Panhandles | 0 | Elyria Athletics* | 0 |
| November 25, 1920 | Hammond Pros | 0 | Chicago Boosters* | 27 |
| November 25, 1920 | All-Tonawanda * | 14 | Rochester Jeffersons | 3 |
| November 24, 1921 | Canton Bulldogs | 14 | Akron Pros | 0 |
| November 24, 1921 | Buffalo All-Americans | 7 | Chicago Staleys | 6 |
| November 30, 1922 | Buffalo All-Americans | 21 | Rochester Jeffersons | 0 |
| November 30, 1922 | Chicago Bears | 0 | Chicago Cardinals | 6 |
| November 30, 1922 | Milwaukee Badgers | 0 | Racine Legion | 3 |
| November 30, 1922 | Oorang Indians | 18 | Columbus Panhandles | 6 |
| November 30, 1922 | Akron Pros | 0 | Canton Bulldogs | 14 |
| November 29, 1923 | Toledo Maroons | 0 | Canton Bulldogs | 28 |
| November 29, 1923 | Chicago Cardinals | 0 | Chicago Bears | 3 |
| November 29, 1923 | Hammond Pros | 0 | Green Bay Packers | 19 |
| November 29, 1923 | Milwaukee Badgers | 16 | Racine Legion | 0 |
| November 27, 1924 | Buffalo Bisons | 0 | Akron Pros | 22 |
| November 27, 1924 | Chicago Bears | 21 | Chicago Cardinals | 0 |
| November 27, 1924 | Dayton Triangles | 7 | Frankford Yellowjackets | 32 |
| November 27, 1924 | Milwaukee Badgers | 10 | Cleveland Bulldogs | 53 |
| November 27, 1924 | Green Bay Packers | 17 | Kansas City Blues | 6 |
| November 26, 1925 | Chicago Cardinals | 0 | Chicago Bears | 0 |
| November 26, 1925 | Kansas City Cowboys | 17 | Cleveland Bulldogs | 0 |
| November 26, 1925 | Rock Island Independents | 6 | Detroit Panthers | 3 |
| November 26, 1925 | Green Bay Packers | 0 | Pottsville Maroons | 31 |
| November 25, 1926 | New York Giants | 17 | Brooklyn Lions | 0 |
| November 25, 1926 | Los Angeles Buccaneers | 9 | Detroit Panthers | 6 |
| November 25, 1926 | Chicago Cardinals | 0 | Chicago Bears | 0 |
| November 25, 1926 | Green Bay Packers | 14 | Frankford Yellowjackets | 20 |
| November 25, 1926 | Providence Steam Roller | 0 | Pottsville Maroons | 8 |
| November 25, 1926 | Akron Pros | 0 | Canton Bulldogs | 0 |
| November 25, 1926 | Los Angeles Wildcats | 0 | Chicago Bulls | 0 |
| November 25, 1926 | Philadelphia Quakers | 13 | New York Yankees | 10 |
| November 24, 1927 | Chicago Cardinals | 3 | Chicago Bears | 0 |
| November 24, 1927 | Providence Steam Roller | 0 | Pottsville Maroons | 6 |
| November 24, 1927 | Green Bay Packers | 17 | Frankford Yellowjackets | 9 |
| November 24, 1927 | Cleveland Bulldogs | 30 | New York Yankees | 19 |
| Season | Visiting Team | Score | Home Team | Score |
| November 29, 1928 | Providence Steam Roller | 7 | Pottsville Maroons | 0 |
| November 29, 1928 | Dayton Triangles | 0 | Detroit Wolverines | 33 |
| November 29, 1928 | Green Bay Packers | 0 | Frankford Yellow Jackets | 2 |
| November 29, 1928 | Chicago Cardinals | 0 | Chicago Bears | 34 |
| November 28, 1929 | New York Giants | 21 | Staten Island Stapletons | 7 |
| November 28, 1929 | Green Bay Packers | 0 | Frankford Yellow Jackets | 0 |
| November 28, 1929 | Chicago Cardinals | 40 | Chicago Bears | 6 |
| November 27, 1930 | New York Giants | 6 | Staten Island Stapletons | 7 |
| November 27, 1930 | Providence Steam Roller | 12 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 33 |
| November 27, 1930 | Green Bay Packers | 25 | Frankford Yellowjackets | 7 |
| November 27, 1930 | Chicago Cardinals | 0 | Chicago Bears | 6 |
| November 26, 1931 | Green Bay Packers | 38 | Providence Steam Roller | 7 |
| November 26, 1931 | New York Giants | 6 | Staten Island Stapletons | 9 |
| November 26, 1931 | Chicago Cardinals | 7 | Chicago Bears | 18 |
| November 24, 1932 | Green Bay Packers | 7 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 0 |
| November 24, 1932 | New York Giants | 13 | Staten Island Stapletons | 13 |
| November 24, 1932 | Chicago Cardinals | 0 | Chicago Bears | 24 |
| November 30, 1933 | New York Giants | 10 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 0 |
| November 30, 1933 | Chicago Bears | 22 | Chicago Cardinals | 6 |
| November 29, 1934 | Green Bay Packers | 0 | Chicago Cardinals | 6 |
| November 29, 1934 | New York Giants | 27 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 0 |
| November 29, 1934 | Chicago Bears | 19 | Detroit Lions | 16 |
| November 28, 1935 | Green Bay Packers | 7 | Chicago Cardinals | 9 |
| November 28, 1935 | New York Giants | 21 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 0 |
| November 28, 1935 | Chicago Bears | 2 | Detroit Lions | 14 |
| November 26, 1936 | Chicago Bears | 7 | Detroit Lions | 13 |
| November 26, 1936 | New York Giants | 14 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 0 |
| November 26, 1936 | Cleveland Rams | 7 | Rochester Tigers | 6 |
| November 25, 1937 | Chicago Bears | 13 | Detroit Lions | 0 |
| November 25, 1937 | New York Giants | 13 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 13 |
| November 24, 1938 | Chicago Bears | 7 | Detroit Lions | 14 |
| November 24, 1938 | New York Giants | 7 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 7 |
| November 23, 1939 | Pittsburgh Pirates | 14 | Philadelphia Eagles | 17 |
| November 21, 1940 | New York Yankees | 16 | Columbus Bullies | 17 |
| November 21, 1940 | Buffalo Tigers | 13 | Milwaukee Chiefs | 30 |
| November 28, 1940 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 0 | Philadelphia Eagles | 7 |
1945–1959
- No Thanksgiving games were held from 1941 to 1944.
- Thanksgiving games were played on the fourth Thursday in November from 1945 onward.
- The All-America Football Conference also played Thanksgiving games from 1946 to 1949.
| Season | League | Visiting Team | Score | Home Team | Score | Network |
| November 22, 1945 | NFL | Cleveland Rams | 28 | Detroit Lions | 21 | N/A |
| November 28, 1946 | NFL | Boston Yanks | 34 | Detroit Lions | 10 | N/A |
| November 28, 1946 | AAFC | New York Yankees | 21 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 7 | N/A |
| November 27, 1947 | NFL | Chicago Bears | 34 | Detroit Lions | 14 | N/A |
| November 27, 1947 | AAFC | Cleveland Browns | 27 | Los Angeles Dons | 17 | N/A |
| November 27, 1947 | AAFC | San Francisco 49ers | 21 | Brooklyn Dodgers | 7 | N/A |
| November 25, 1948 | NFL | Chicago Cardinals | 28 | Detroit Lions | 14 | N/A |
| November 25, 1948 | AAFC | Cleveland Browns | 31 | Los Angeles Dons | 14 | N/A |
| November 25, 1948 | AAFC | Buffalo Bills | 39 | Chicago Rockets | 35 | N/A |
| November 24, 1949 | NFL | Chicago Bears | 28 | Detroit Lions | 7 | N/A |
| November 24, 1949 | AAFC | New York Yankees | 17 | Los Angeles Dons | 16 | N/A |
| November 24, 1949 | AAFC | Cleveland Browns | 14 | Chicago Hornets | 6 | N/A |
| November 23, 1950 | NFL | New York Yanks | 14 | Detroit Lions | 49 | N/A |
| November 23, 1950 | NFL | Pittsburgh Steelers | 28 | Chicago Cardinals | 17 | N/A |
| November 22, 1951 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 35 | Detroit Lions | 52 | N/A |
| November 27, 1952 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 24 | Detroit Lions | 48 | N/A |
| November 27, 1952 | NFL | Chicago Bears | 23 | Dallas Texans | 27 | N/A |
| November 26, 1953 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 15 | Detroit Lions | 34 | DuMont |
| November 25, 1954 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 24 | Detroit Lions | 28 | DuMont |
| November 24, 1955 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 10 | Detroit Lions | 24 | DuMont |
| November 22, 1956 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 24 | Detroit Lions | 20 | CBS |
| November 28, 1957 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 6 | Detroit Lions | 18 | CBS |
| November 27, 1958 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 14 | Detroit Lions | 24 | CBS |
| November 26, 1959 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 24 | Detroit Lions | 17 | CBS |
1960–1969
- The American Football League also played Thanksgiving Day games during this decade.
- The Dallas Cowboys started playing their traditional series in 1966.
| Season | League | Visiting Team | Score | Home Team | Score | Network |
| November 24, 1960 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 10 | Detroit Lions | 23 | CBS |
| November 24, 1960 | AFL | Dallas Texans | 35 | New York Titans | 41 | ABC |
| November 23, 1961 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 17 | Detroit Lions | 9 | CBS |
| November 23, 1961 | AFL | Buffalo Bills | 14 | New York Titans | 21 | ABC |
| November 22, 1962 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 14 | Detroit Lions | 26 | CBS |
| November 22, 1962 | AFL | New York Titans | 46 | Denver Broncos | 45 | ABC |
| November 28, 1963 | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 13 | Detroit Lions | 13 | CBS |
| November 28, 1963 | AFL | Oakland Raiders | 26 | Denver Broncos | 10 | ABC |
| November 26, 1964 | NFL | Chicago Bears | 27 | Detroit Lions | 24 | CBS |
| November 26, 1964 | AFL | Buffalo Bills | 27 | San Diego Chargers | 24 | ABC |
| November 25, 1965 | NFL | Baltimore Colts | 24 | Detroit Lions | 24 | CBS |
| November 25, 1965 | AFL | Buffalo Bills | 20 | San Diego Chargers | 20 | NBC |
| November 24, 1966 | NFL | San Francisco 49ers | 41 | Detroit Lions | 14 | CBS |
| November 24, 1966 | NFL | Cleveland Browns | 14 | Dallas Cowboys | 26 | CBS |
| November 24, 1966 | AFL | Buffalo Bills | 31 | Oakland Raiders | 10 | NBC |
| November 23, 1967 | NFL | Los Angeles Rams | 31 | Detroit Lions | 7 | CBS |
| November 23, 1967 | NFL | St. Louis Cardinals | 21 | Dallas Cowboys | 46 | CBS |
| November 23, 1967 | AFL | Oakland Raiders | 44 | Kansas City Chiefs | 22 | NBC |
| November 23, 1967 | AFL | Denver Broncos | 20 | San Diego Chargers | 24 | NBC |
| November 28, 1968 | NFL | Philadelphia Eagles | 12 | Detroit Lions | 0 | CBS |
| November 28, 1968 | NFL | Washington Redskins | 20 | Dallas Cowboys | 29 | CBS |
| November 28, 1968 | AFL | Buffalo Bills | 10 | Oakland Raiders | 13 | NBC |
| November 28, 1968 | AFL | Houston Oilers | 10 | Kansas City Chiefs | 24 | NBC |
| November 27, 1969 | NFL | Minnesota Vikings | 27 | Detroit Lions | 0 | CBS |
| November 27, 1969 | NFL | San Francisco 49ers | 24 | Dallas Cowboys | 24 | CBS |
| November 27, 1969 | AFL | Denver Broncos | 17 | Kansas City Chiefs | 31 | NBC |
| November 27, 1969 | AFL | San Diego Chargers | 21 | Houston Oilers | 17 | NBC |
1970–2005
- From to, three NFC teams and one AFC team played each Thanksgiving.
- The two afternoon games were held at Detroit and Dallas, respectively. Detroit always hosts the "early" game because a 12:30 p.m. EST kick-off at Dallas would be 11:30 a.m. local time, and the NFL avoids starting games before noon locally. The two games rotate annually as intra-conference and inter-conference games. This is to satisfy the television contract balance between CBS and Fox.
- The "early" game kicks off at a special time of 12:30 p.m. EST as opposed to the typical afternoon start time of 1 p.m. This provides an additional 30 minutes to prevent overlapping of the "late" game, and also gave the network time for a pregame show and some additional time for an expanded halftime show. When Fox carries the "early" game, they typically start their pregame coverage at 11:30 a.m.. When CBS carries the "early" game, they start their pregame coverage at 12:00 p.m., due to the fact that their morning parade coverage runs until noon. The network with the 4:15 "late" game begins pregame coverage at 3:30 p.m. EST.
- Dallas was replaced by the St. Louis Cardinals as a host team in and ; Dallas and St. Louis faced each other at Texas Stadium in 1976. Because of the Missouri Turkey Day Game, the long-established Kirkwood–Webster Groves high school football game that takes place on Thanksgiving in St. Louis, weak fan support in St. Louis, and general national preference of the Cowboys over the historically weaker Cardinals, the Cardinals' hosting of the Thanksgiving game was not popular. Dallas returned to hosting the game in 1978 and has hosted since. Likewise, the Rams never played on Thanksgiving while in St. Louis, in part because of the Turkey Day Game and also because the Missouri State High School Activities Association has held its state football championship games on Thanksgiving weekend at The Dome at America's Center since 1996.
- Since the time NFL began its current alignment in 2002, no team from the AFC North can play a Thanksgiving Day game against the traditional hosts. This is because under the current rotation, the Cowboys and the Lions each play AFC North teams in years that Fox is scheduled to broadcast its Thanksgiving Day game, requiring an NFC opponent. The last game to feature a team currently in the AFC North was the Lions matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1998. AFC North teams can play in the prime time game, as the Cincinnati Bengals did in 2010. With the advent of games being flexed to other networks starting around 2014, this is no longer an issue.
| Season | Visiting Team | Score | Home Team | Score | OT | Network |
| November 26, 1970 | Oakland Raiders | 14 | Detroit Lions | 28 | NBC | |
| November 26, 1970 | Green Bay Packers | 3 | Dallas Cowboys | 16 | CBS | |
| November 25, 1971 | Kansas City Chiefs | 21 | Detroit Lions | 32 | NBC | |
| November 25, 1971 | Los Angeles Rams | 21 | Dallas Cowboys | 28 | CBS | |
| November 23, 1972 | New York Jets | 20 | Detroit Lions | 37 | NBC | |
| November 23, 1972 | San Francisco 49ers | 31 | Dallas Cowboys | 10 | CBS | |
| November 22, 1973 | Washington Redskins | 20 | Detroit Lions | 0 | CBS | |
| November 22, 1973 | Miami Dolphins | 14 | Dallas Cowboys | 7 | NBC | |
| November 28, 1974 | Denver Broncos | 31 | Detroit Lions | 27 | NBC | |
| November 28, 1974 | Washington Redskins | 23 | Dallas Cowboys | 24 | CBS | |
| November 27, 1975 | Los Angeles Rams | 20 | Detroit Lions | 0 | CBS | |
| November 27, 1975 | Buffalo Bills | 32 | St. Louis Cardinals | 14 | NBC | |
| November 25, 1976 | Buffalo Bills | 14 | Detroit Lions | 27 | NBC | |
| November 25, 1976 | St. Louis Cardinals | 14 | Dallas Cowboys | 19 | CBS | |
| November 24, 1977 | Chicago Bears | 31 | Detroit Lions | 14 | CBS | |
| November 24, 1977 | Miami Dolphins | 55 | St. Louis Cardinals | 14 | NBC | |
| November 23, 1978 | Denver Broncos | 14 | Detroit Lions | 17 | NBC | |
| November 23, 1978 | Washington Redskins | 10 | Dallas Cowboys | 37 | CBS | |
| November 22, 1979 | Chicago Bears | 0 | Detroit Lions | 20 | CBS | |
| November 22, 1979 | Houston Oilers | 30 | Dallas Cowboys | 24 | NBC | |
| November 27, 1980 | Chicago Bears | 23 | Detroit Lions | 17 | CBS | |
| November 27, 1980 | Seattle Seahawks | 7 | Dallas Cowboys | 51 | NBC | |
| November 26, 1981 | Kansas City Chiefs | 10 | Detroit Lions | 27 | NBC | |
| November 26, 1981 | Chicago Bears | 9 | Dallas Cowboys | 10 | CBS | |
| November 25, 1982 | New York Giants | 13 | Detroit Lions | 6 | CBS | |
| November 25, 1982 | Cleveland Browns | 14 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | NBC | |
| November 24, 1983 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 3 | Detroit Lions | 45 | NBC | |
| November 24, 1983 | St. Louis Cardinals | 17 | Dallas Cowboys | 35 | CBS | |
| November 22, 1984 | Green Bay Packers | 28 | Detroit Lions | 31 | CBS | |
| November 22, 1984 | New England Patriots | 17 | Dallas Cowboys | 20 | NBC | |
| November 28, 1985 | New York Jets | 20 | Detroit Lions | 31 | NBC | |
| November 28, 1985 | St. Louis Cardinals | 17 | Dallas Cowboys | 35 | CBS | |
| November 27, 1986 | Green Bay Packers | 44 | Detroit Lions | 40 | CBS | |
| November 27, 1986 | Seattle Seahawks | 31 | Dallas Cowboys | 14 | NBC | |
| November 26, 1987 | Kansas City Chiefs | 27 | Detroit Lions | 20 | NBC | |
| November 26, 1987 | Minnesota Vikings | 44 | Dallas Cowboys | 38 | CBS | |
| November 24, 1988 | Minnesota Vikings | 23 | Detroit Lions | 0 | CBS | |
| November 24, 1988 | Houston Oilers | 25 | Dallas Cowboys | 17 | NBC | |
| November 23, 1989 | Cleveland Browns | 10 | Detroit Lions | 13 | NBC | |
| November 23, 1989 | Philadelphia Eagles | 27 | Dallas Cowboys | 0 | CBS | |
| November 22, 1990 | Denver Broncos | 27 | Detroit Lions | 40 | NBC | |
| November 22, 1990 | Washington Redskins | 17 | Dallas Cowboys | 27 | CBS | |
| November 28, 1991 | Chicago Bears | 6 | Detroit Lions | 16 | CBS | |
| November 28, 1991 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 10 | Dallas Cowboys | 20 | NBC | |
| November 26, 1992 | Houston Oilers | 24 | Detroit Lions | 21 | NBC | |
| November 26, 1992 | New York Giants | 3 | Dallas Cowboys | 30 | CBS | |
| November 25, 1993 | Chicago Bears | 10 | Detroit Lions | 6 | CBS | |
| November 25, 1993 | Miami Dolphins | 16 | Dallas Cowboys | 14 | NBC | |
| November 24, 1994 | Buffalo Bills | 21 | Detroit Lions | 35 | NBC | |
| November 24, 1994 | Green Bay Packers | 31 | Dallas Cowboys | 42 | Fox | |
| November 23, 1995 | Minnesota Vikings | 38 | Detroit Lions | 44 | Fox | |
| November 23, 1995 | Kansas City Chiefs | 12 | Dallas Cowboys | 24 | NBC | |
| November 28, 1996 | Kansas City Chiefs | 28 | Detroit Lions | 24 | NBC | |
| November 28, 1996 | Washington Redskins | 10 | Dallas Cowboys | 21 | Fox | |
| November 27, 1997 | Chicago Bears | 20 | Detroit Lions | 55 | Fox | |
| November 27, 1997 | Tennessee Oilers | 27 | Dallas Cowboys | 14 | NBC | |
| November 26, 1998 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 16 | Detroit Lions | 19 | CBS | |
| November 26, 1998 | Minnesota Vikings | 46 | Dallas Cowboys | 36 | Fox | |
| November 25, 1999 | Chicago Bears | 17 | Detroit Lions | 21 | Fox | |
| November 25, 1999 | Miami Dolphins | 0 | Dallas Cowboys | 20 | CBS | |
| November 23, 2000 | New England Patriots | 9 | Detroit Lions | 34 | CBS | |
| November 23, 2000 | Minnesota Vikings | 27 | Dallas Cowboys | 15 | Fox | |
| November 22, 2001 | Green Bay Packers | 29 | Detroit Lions | 27 | Fox | |
| November 22, 2001 | Denver Broncos | 26 | Dallas Cowboys | 24 | CBS | |
| November 28, 2002 | New England Patriots | 20 | Detroit Lions | 12 | CBS | |
| November 28, 2002 | Washington Redskins | 20 | Dallas Cowboys | 27 | Fox | |
| November 27, 2003 | Green Bay Packers | 14 | Detroit Lions | 22 | Fox | |
| November 27, 2003 | Miami Dolphins | 40 | Dallas Cowboys | 21 | CBS | |
| November 25, 2004 | Indianapolis Colts | 41 | Detroit Lions | 9 | CBS | |
| November 25, 2004 | Chicago Bears | 7 | Dallas Cowboys | 21 | Fox | |
| November 24, 2005 | Atlanta Falcons | 27 | Detroit Lions | 7 | Fox | |
| November 24, 2005 | Denver Broncos | 24 | Dallas Cowboys | 21 | CBS |
2006–present
- Since 2006, three contests have been played on Thanksgiving. In addition to the traditional Detroit and Dallas home afternoon games, a third game is now played in primetime and televised by NFL Network or NBC. Current plans call for the various NFL teams to take turns hosting the night game on a rotation basis.
- In, Kansas City hosted the first prime time Thanksgiving game. The game marked a new "Thanksgiving Tripleheader" tradition. The Denver/Kansas City game marked the first time more than two games were played on Thanksgiving since the AFL–NFL merger in.
- The 2014 season was the first in which all three games feature NFC vs. NFC opponents. There were also all-NFC matchups in 2015 and 2018. 2017 and 2019 each featured five NFC teams and only one participating AFC team.
- Since, the prime time game has been held between division rivals every year, with the exception of 2016 which featured the Indianapolis Colts hosting the Pittsburgh Steelers.
| Season | Visiting Team | Score | Home Team | Score | OT | Notes | Network |
| November 23, 2006 | Miami Dolphins | 27 | Detroit Lions | 10 | CBS | ||
| November 23, 2006 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 10 | Dallas Cowboys | 38 | Fox | ||
| November 23, 2006 | Denver Broncos | 10 | Kansas City Chiefs | 19 | Broncos–Chiefs rivalry; debut of Thursday Night Football | NFL Network | |
| November 22, 2007 | Green Bay Packers | 37 | Detroit Lions | 26 | Lions–Packers rivalry | Fox | |
| November 22, 2007 | New York Jets | 3 | Dallas Cowboys | 34 | CBS | ||
| November 22, 2007 | Indianapolis Colts | 31 | Atlanta Falcons | 13 | Colts enter as the defending Super Bowl champions | NFL Network | |
| November 27, 2008 | Tennessee Titans | 47 | Detroit Lions | 10 | CBS | ||
| November 27, 2008 | Seattle Seahawks | 9 | Dallas Cowboys | 34 | Fox | ||
| November 27, 2008 | Arizona Cardinals | 20 | Philadelphia Eagles | 48 | A preview of that year's NFC Championship game. | NFL Network | |
| November 26, 2009 | Green Bay Packers | 34 | Detroit Lions | 12 | Lions–Packers rivalry | Fox | |
| November 26, 2009 | Oakland Raiders | 7 | Dallas Cowboys | 24 | 50th anniversary for both teams | CBS | |
| November 26, 2009 | New York Giants | 6 | Denver Broncos | 26 | NFL Network | ||
| November 25, 2010 | New England Patriots | 45 | Detroit Lions | 24 | CBS | ||
| November 25, 2010 | New Orleans Saints | 30 | Dallas Cowboys | 27 | Saints' first Thanksgiving game, enter as the defending Super Bowl champions | Fox | |
| November 25, 2010 | Cincinnati Bengals | 10 | New York Jets | 26 | Bengals' first Thanksgiving game | NFL Network | |
| November 24, 2011 | Green Bay Packers | 27 | Detroit Lions | 15 | Lions–Packers rivalry; Packers enter as the defending Super Bowl champions | Fox | |
| November 24, 2011 | Miami Dolphins | 19 | Dallas Cowboys | 20 | Super Bowl VI | CBS | |
| November 24, 2011 | San Francisco 49ers | 6 | Baltimore Ravens | 16 | Ravens' first Thanksgiving game, first Harbaugh vs. Harbaugh matchup | NFL Network | |
| November 22, 2012 | Houston Texans | 34 | Detroit Lions | 31 | Texans' first Thanksgiving game | CBS | |
| November 22, 2012 | Washington Redskins | 38 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | Cowboys–Redskins rivalry | Fox | |
| November 22, 2012 | New England Patriots | 49 | New York Jets | 19 | Jets–Patriots rivalry | NBC | |
| November 28, 2013 | Green Bay Packers | 10 | Detroit Lions | 40 | Lions–Packers rivalry | Fox | |
| November 28, 2013 | Oakland Raiders | 24 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | CBS | ||
| November 28, 2013 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 20 | Baltimore Ravens | 22 | Ravens–Steelers rivalry; Ravens enter as the defending Super Bowl champions | NBC | |
| November 27, 2014 | Chicago Bears | 17 | Detroit Lions | 34 | Bears–Lions rivalry | CBS | |
| November 27, 2014 | Philadelphia Eagles | 33 | Dallas Cowboys | 10 | Cowboys–Eagles rivalry | Fox | |
| November 27, 2014 | Seattle Seahawks | 19 | San Francisco 49ers | 3 | 49ers–Seahawks rivalry and the 2013 NFC Championship game rematch; Seahawks enter as the defending Super Bowl champions | NBC | |
| November 26, 2015 | Philadelphia Eagles | 14 | Detroit Lions | 45 | Fox | ||
| November 26, 2015 | Carolina Panthers | 33 | Dallas Cowboys | 14 | Panthers' first Thanksgiving game | CBS | |
| November 26, 2015 | Chicago Bears | 17 | Green Bay Packers | 13 | Bears–Packers rivalry | NBC | |
| November 24, 2016 | Minnesota Vikings | 13 | Detroit Lions | 16 | Lions–Vikings rivalry | CBS | |
| November 24, 2016 | Washington Redskins | 26 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | Cowboys–Redskins rivalry | Fox | |
| November 24, 2016 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 28 | Indianapolis Colts | 7 | NBC | ||
| November 23, 2017 | Minnesota Vikings | 30 | Detroit Lions | 23 | Lions–Vikings rivalry | Fox | |
| November 23, 2017 | Los Angeles Chargers | 28 | Dallas Cowboys | 6 | Chargers' first Thanksgiving game since before the AFL–NFL merger | CBS | |
| November 23, 2017 | New York Giants | 10 | Washington Redskins | 20 | Giants–Redskins rivalry | NBC | |
| November 22, 2018 | Chicago Bears | 23 | Detroit Lions | 16 | Bears–Lions rivalry | CBS | |
| November 22, 2018 | Washington Redskins | 23 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | Cowboys–Redskins rivalry | Fox | |
| November 22, 2018 | Atlanta Falcons | 17 | New Orleans Saints | 31 | Falcons–Saints rivalry | NBC | |
| November 28, 2019 | Chicago Bears | 24 | Detroit Lions | 20 | Bears–Lions rivalry | Fox | |
| November 28, 2019 | Buffalo Bills | 26 | Dallas Cowboys | 15 | Commemoration of Super Bowls XXVII and XXVIII | CBS | |
| November 28, 2019 | New Orleans Saints | 26 | Atlanta Falcons | 18 | Falcons–Saints rivalry | NBC | |
| November 26, 2020 | Houston Texans | 0 | Detroit Lions | 0 | CBS | ||
| November 26, 2020 | Washington Football Team | 0 | Dallas Cowboys | 0 | Cowboys–Redskins rivalry | Fox | |
| November 26, 2020 | Baltimore Ravens | 0 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 0 | Ravens–Steelers rivalry | NBC |
Game standings
Of current NFL franchises. This includes American Football League games; however, it does not include All-America Football Conference games.| Team | Last Game | Wins | Losses | Ties | Win % | Other names appeared under |
| Arizona Cardinals | 2008 | 6 | 15 | 2 | Chicago Cardinals St. Louis Cardinals Phoenix Cardinals | |
| Atlanta Falcons | 2019 | 1 | 3 | 0 | ||
| Baltimore Ravens | 2013 | 2 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Buffalo Bills | 2019 | 4 | 4 | 1 | Does not include 1–0 record of unrelated AAFC team of same name. | |
| Carolina Panthers | 2015 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Chicago Bears | 2019 | 19 | 15 | 2 | Decatur Staleys Chicago Staleys | |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 2010 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Cleveland Browns | 1989 | 0 | 3 | 0 | Does not include 3–0 record when team was a member of the AAFC. | |
| Dallas Cowboys | 2019 | 31 | 20 | 1 | ||
| Denver Broncos | 2009 | 4 | 7 | 0 | ||
| Detroit Lions | 2019 | 37 | 41 | 2 | ||
| Green Bay Packers | 2015 | 14 | 20 | 2 | ||
| Houston Texans | 2012 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Indianapolis Colts | 2016 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Baltimore Colts | |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | Never | 0 | 0 | 0 | Only active franchise to have never played on Thanksgiving. | |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 2006 | 5 | 5 | 0 | Dallas Texans, does not include 1–0 record of unrelated NFL Dallas Texans. | |
| Los Angeles Chargers | 2017 | 3 | 1 | 1 | San Diego Chargers | |
| Los Angeles Rams | 1975 | 3 | 1 | 0 | Cleveland Rams, does not include 1936 AFL's Cleveland Rams St. Louis Rams | |
| Miami Dolphins | 2011 | 5 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Minnesota Vikings | 2017 | 6 | 2 | 0 | ||
| New England Patriots | 2012 | 3 | 2 | 0 | ||
| New Orleans Saints | 2019 | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| New York Giants | 2017 | 7 | 5 | 3 | ||
| New York Jets | 2012 | 4 | 4 | 0 | New York Titans | |
| Oakland Raiders | 2013 | 3 | 4 | 0 | ||
| Philadelphia Eagles | 2015 | 6 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 2016 | 2 | 6 | 0 | ||
| San Francisco 49ers | 2014 | 2 | 2 | 1 | Does not include 1–0 record when team was a member of the AAFC. | |
| Seattle Seahawks | 2014 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 2006 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Tennessee Titans | 2008 | 5 | 2 | 0 | Houston Oilers Tennessee Oilers | |
| Washington Football Team | 2018 | 3 | 8 | 0 | Washington Redskins |
Notable appearance droughts
The last currently active franchise to have never played on Thanksgiving through is the Jacksonville Jaguars, who joined the league in.An idiosyncrasy in the NFL's current scheduling formula, which has been in effect in its basic form since 2002, effectively prevented teams from the AFC North from playing the Lions or Cowboys on Thanksgiving, as the formula had the AFC North playing in Dallas or Detroit in years when the other team was slated to play the AFC game on Thanksgiving. These teams, under the television contracts in place at the time, could only play in the third game. With the changes in the scheduling practices in 2014, the division is no longer barred from participating in the game. In practice, the changes have led to fewer AFC games, as the league has regularly scheduled the Lions' and Cowboys' division rivals for the contests so that ratings are maximized; eight out of the twelve Thanksgiving games involving the Lions or Cowboys since 2014 have involved a team in the same division, while only two have involved the AFC.
The Los Angeles Rams have the longest active appearance drought of any team, with their last appearance coming in 1975. Among current NFL markets, Cleveland has had the longest wait to have a team from its city play on Thanksgiving; the Browns last appeared in 1989, six years before suspending operations in 1995, and have not appeared in the game since rejoining the league as an expansion team in 1999.
Since 2010, several appearance droughts have ended. New Orleans, Cincinnati, Baltimore, Houston, and Carolina all played their first Thanksgiving games during this time frame. San Francisco likewise played their first Thanksgiving game since 1972 in 2011, and the Los Angeles Chargers, who last played on the holiday in 1969 before actually joining the league, appeared for the first time as an NFL member in 2017.
Thanksgiving Day records of defunct teams
| Team | Wins | Losses | Ties | Win Pct. | Other names appeared under |
| Frankford Yellow Jackets | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct | |
| New York Yankees* | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct | |
| Pottsville Maroons | 2 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct | |
| Boston Yanks | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct | |
| Buffalo Bills* | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct, unrelated to current NFL team with this name | |
| Dallas Texans | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct, does not count AFL's Dallas Texans, which are now the Kansas City Chiefs | |
| Los Angeles Buccaneers | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct | |
| Oorang Indians | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct | |
| Rock Island Independents | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct | |
| All-Tonawanda Lumberjacks | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Defunct | |
| Akron Pros | 3 | 1 | 1 | .700 | Defunct |
| Buffalo Bisons | 1 | 1 | 1 | .500 | Buffalo All-Americans, Defunct |
| Canton Bulldogs | 1 | 1 | 1 | .500 | Defunct |
| Cleveland Bulldogs | 1 | 1 | .500 | Defunct | |
| Dayton Triangles | 1 | 1 | .500 | Defunct | |
| Kansas City Cowboys | 1 | 1 | .500 | Kansas City Blues, Defunct | |
| Milwaukee Badgers | 1 | 1 | .500 | Defunct | |
| Brooklyn Lions | 0 | 1 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Chicago Tigers | 0 | 1 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Detroit Heralds | 0 | 1 | .000 | Defunct | |
| New York Yanks | 0 | 1 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Providence Steam Roller | 0 | 1 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Racine Legion | 0 | 1 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Toledo Maroons | 0 | 1 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Brooklyn Dodgers* | 0 | 2 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Chicago Hornets* | 0 | 2 | .000 | Chicago Rockets, Defunct | |
| Columbus Panhandles | 0 | 2 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Detroit Panthers | 0 | 2 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Hammond Pros | 0 | 2 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Rochester Jeffersons | 0 | 2 | .000 | Defunct | |
| Los Angeles Dons* | 0 | 3 | .000 | Defunct |
- All-America Football Conference team.
Game MVPs
Turkey Leg Award (CBS & Fox)
In, John Madden of CBS awarded the first "Turkey Leg Award", for the game's most valuable player. Pursuant to its name, it was an actual cooked turkey leg, and players typically took a celebratory bite out of the leg for the cameras during post-game interviews. Reggie White of the Eagles was the first recipient. The gesture was seen mostly as a humorous gimmick relating to Madden's famous multi-legged turkey, cooked and delivered by local restaurant owner Joe Pat Fieseler of Harvey's Barbecue. Since then, however, the award has gained subtle notoriety. Madden brought the award to Fox in, and it continued through 2001.Because of the loose and informal nature of the award, at times it has been awarded to multiple players. On one occasion in 1994, it was given to players of both teams.
Galloping Gobbler / Game Ball / WWE Championship Belt (Fox)
When John Madden left Fox after 2001, the network introduced a new award starting in 2002, named the "Galloping Gobbler." It was represented by a small figurine of a cartoonish, silver turkey wearing a football helmet striking a Heisman-like pose. Much like Cleatus and Digger, the original Galloping Gobbler trophy reflected Fox's irreverent mascots, and went through several iterations. Unimpressed by its tackiness after having won four Turkey Legs in the 1990s, the inaugural winner, Emmitt Smith, famously threw the 2002 award into a trash can.In 2007, the kitschy statuette was replaced with a bronze-colored statue of a nondescript turkey holding a football. In 2011, the trophies were discarded altogether and replaced by an attractive plaque. Unlike the aforementioned "Turkey Leg Award", the "Galloping Gobbler" is normally awarded to only one player annually, however in 2016, co-winners were honored.
For 2017, the Galloping Gobbler was permanently retired, and replaced with the "Game Ball," a stylish, ornate football-shaped trophy, reminiscent of the tradition where game-used balls are typically awarded to players of the game. No one at Fox seemed to notice the first ball awarded had the stripe markings of a college ball.
As Fox had signed a deal with the WWE to air SmackDown, the Game Ball was replaced by a WWE Championship Belt in 2019. Mitchell Trubisky of the Chicago Bears became the first recipient of the belt.
All-Iron Award (CBS)
When the NFL returned to CBS in, they introduced their own award, the "All-Iron Award", which is, suitably enough, a small silver iron, a reference to Phil Simms' All-Iron team for toughness. The All-Iron winner also receives a skillet of blackberry cobbler made by Simms' mother.Through 2006, the trophy was only awarded to one player annually. Occasionally, it has been issued as a "group award" in addition to a single player award. In 2008, Simms stated it was "too close to call" and named four players to the trophy; he then gave the award to several people every year until 2013, after which he reverted to a single MVP in 2014.
Simms was removed from the broadcast booth for the 2017 season in favor of Tony Romo, who did not carry on the tradition. Instead, the "Chevrolet Player of the Game" award was extended to CBS' Thanksgiving Day game. As in CBS' regular Sunday afternoon NFL coverage as well as Fox's regular NFL coverage, Chevrolet will donate money in the player's name to the United Way if the game is played in Detroit, the Salvation Army if the Thanksgiving Day game is played in Dallas.
For the 2019 season, CBS revived the Turkey Leg Award, awarding it to Josh Allen.
Prime time games (NFLN & NBC)
During the time when NFL Network held the broadcast rights the prime time game, from 2007 to 2011 they gave out the "Pudding Pie Award" for MVPs. The award was an actual pie. In 2009, NFL Network gave Brandon Marshall a pumpkin pie rather than the chocolate pudding pie of the previous two years.NBC, which carried Thanksgiving afternoon games through 1997, did not issue an MVP award during that time. NBC began broadcasting the Thanksgiving prime time game in 2012, at which point the MVP award was added. The award is currently called the Sunday Night Football on Thanksgiving Night Player of the Game, and is typically awarded to multiple players on the winning team. From 2012 to 2015, the NBC award was referred to as the "Madden Thanksgiving Player-of-the-Game", honoring John Madden. In the first few years, the award specifically went to players on both offense and defense, but in recent years, there have been no quotas for each phase and thus the awards can be given to any position. The winning players are presented with ceremonial game balls and, as a gesture to Madden, a cooked turkey leg.
Complete list
- Of the members of the 2007 Cowboys defense, Chris Canty, DeMarcus Ware, Terence Newman and Greg Ellis were particularly noted.
- No official CBS award has been handed out since 2016, though in 2017, Philip Rivers and Keenan Allen were interviewed after the game during post-game coverage, while in 2018, Chase Daniel was interviewed.
Broadcasting
Starting in 2012, all three broadcast networks with NFL rights will carry one game apiece. The first two games are split between CBS and Fox. These games are rotated annually, with CBS getting the 12:30 p.m. "early" game, and Fox getting the 4:30 p.m. "late" game in even-numbered years, while Fox likewise gets the "early" game and CBS the "late" game in odd-numbered years. The third game, with a prime time 8:20 p.m. start, is carried by NBC. The NFL may involve the Flexible Scheduling rule in the future to reassign games if the night game has less importance than the Dallas or Detroit game.
In 2014, two developments would eventually allow for the networks to carry teams from either of the two conferences, something that was not allowed prior to this point. First, a system known as "cross-flex" was imposed, in which the two networks bound by conference restrictions, CBS and Fox, could carry Sunday afternoon games that would otherwise air on the other network. That same year, in order to accommodate CBS's new contract to simulcast Thursday Night Football, the network was given permission to air games with teams from either conference on Thursdays in a deal separate from its Sunday afternoon rights. From that year through 2016, CBS carried all-NFC contests every year on Thanksgiving, and in 2014 and 2015, no AFC teams played in any of the Thanksgiving games. It was initially unclear what mechanism was involved that allowed CBS to carry the NFC vs. NFC matchups; two separate articles on the NFL's official Web site gave conflicting possibilities, with one by Kevin Patra speculating that it was covered under the cross-flex rule and another by Gregg Rosenthal stating that, because the Thanksgiving matchup was on a Thursday, the cross-flex rule did not apply.
CBS's Thursday Night Football rights expired after the 2017 season, after which Fox won the bidding. The league then scheduled all three games in 2018 to feature NFC vs. NFC opponents, with CBS given the Chicago Bears as the Lions' opponent for the early game while Fox carries the Washington at Dallas late afternoon game. NBC still held the rights to the Thanksgiving night game, Atlanta Falcons at New Orleans Saints. To date, the NFL has never assigned an AFC road game to Fox on Thanksgiving.
Westwood One most recently held national radio broadcast rights to all three games, with Compass Media Networks sharing rights to the Cowboys contest. The participating teams also air the games on their local flagship stations and regional radio networks.
The Cowboys Thanksgiving game has regularly been the most watched NFL regular season telecast each year, with the Lions Thanksgiving game usually in the top five.