Thanksgiving and NFL games go hand in hand. Since its inception in 1920, the NFL has hosted games on Thanksgiving. Initially, there used to be two games on this holiday, but since 2006, three games have been organized every year. This year is no exception, with the traditional Thanksgiving hosts, the Detroit Lions, set to face the Green Bay Packers, the Dallas Cowboys to take on the Washington Commanders, and Seattle Seahawks poised to battle against the San Francisco 49ers.

However, two teams always play on Thanksgiving: the Lions and the Cowboys. Let’s find out the reasons behind this tradition and examine which team has performed better or worse on Thanksgiving.

Why do the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys play on Thanksgiving?

This Thanksgiving, the Lions are going to take on the Packers, and currently, they hold a record of 8-2 in the league, while the Packers stand at 4-6. On this Thanksgiving, the Packers will try to continue their winning form from their last game, while the Lions will attempt to secure their first Thanksgiving win since 2016.

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This tradition of Lions hosting Thanksgiving games dates back to 1934. They have won 37 games, lost 44, and tied 2 Thanksgiving games. One of the main reasons behind the Lions playing games on Thanksgiving is marketing – they wanted to attract more fans.

The Cowboys started playing on Thanksgiving in 1966 for a reason similar to the Lions; they wanted national-level publicity. In their first Thanksgiving game, around 80,000 fans attended the game in the stadium. Since then, they have regularly hosted Thanksgiving games, except for two years in the 1970s. The Cowboys have won 32 games, lost 22, and tied 1 Thanksgiving game.

Team records on Thanksgiving

In terms of home advantage, there is little evidence of its presence in Thanksgiving games, as seen from the fact that home teams have won 118 games while losing 112 games. In terms of individual team performance on Thanksgiving, the Cowboys and the Chicago Bears have performed exceptionally well. The Cowboys stand at 32-22-1, while the Bears are at 20-15-2.

Thanksgiving hasn’t been as fortunate for the Arizona Cardinals, Packers, Commanders, and Steelers, as they have performed the worst among the 31 NFL teams. The Cardinals stand at 6-15-2, the Packers at 14-20-2, the Commanders at 4-8, and the Steelers at 2-6. For the Kansas City Chiefs (5-5), New York Giants (7-6-3), and Lions, the performance is somewhat mixed (37-44-20).

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