A look at how teams playing on Thanksgiving have historically fared

When Thanksgiving rolls around, NFL fans know can always expect a side of the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions with their turkey, mashed potatoes and stuffing.

Both teams began their respective holiday traditions in the pre-Super Bowl era. 

Dallas looked at it as an opportunity to give the team more national exposure in the mid-1960s, while Detroit was the first to capitalize on the popularity of Thanksgiving Day football in the early 1930s when former owner George Richards used his pull as the owner of a radio station with an NBC affiliation to get the network to broadcast the Lions’ Thanksgiving games as a ploy to put more butts in seats.

Aside from the usual suspects, this year’s slate of games features a semi-regular Thanksgiving staple and three other teams who haven’t played a turkey day game in over eight years. 

Here’s a look at how each team has fared in Thanksgiving Day action:

Packers vs. Lions, 12:30 p.m. ET

The most-seasoned Thanksgiving Day competitor, the Lions have a 37-44-2 all-time record on the holiday. Their 28-25 loss to the Buffalo Bills last year was among their best performances, and signaled that the Lions are no longer among the NFL’s laughing stocks. 

Detroit hung in with Buffalo and even held a fourth-quarter lead before scored a go-ahead touchdown in the final three minutes and booted the winning field goal with just two seconds left.

The Packers are 14-20-2 all-time on Thanksgiving, with their last holiday game coming in 2015 — a 17-13 loss to the Chicago Bears. In that game, Aaron Rodgers (202 yards, one touchdown, one interception) was outdueled by Jay Cutler (200 yards, one touchdown) in a surprising defensive battle.

Commanders vs. Cowboys, 4:30 p.m. ET

The Commanders are just 4-8 all-time on Thanksgiving, and their last such game was actually a 41-16 drubbing of the Cowboys in 2020. Antonio Gibson rushed for 115 yards and three touchdowns, and the Alex Smith-led Commanders rolled past the Andy Dalton-led Cowboys in one of their more memorable turkey day performances. Washington finished 7-9 that year, but it swept the season series with its NFC East rival.

The Cowboys are 32-22-1 all-time on Thanksgiving, and their last win came last year against the New York Giants in a 28-20 victory that wasn’t as close as the final score may indicate. Dak Prescott connected with Dalton Schultz for two touchdowns while Ezekiel Elliott rushed for another score and Dallas held a 28-13 lead until Daniel Jones hit Richie James for a touchdown in the final 10 seconds to even out the scoreboard.

49ers vs. Seahawks, 8:20 p.m. ET

The 49ers have a 2-2-1 all-time record on Thanksgiving and the Seahawks are 2-2 all-time. Interestingly enough, the last time these two played on the holiday, it was against each other in 2014 — a game Seattle won 19-3.

The Seahawks defense, led by Richard Sherman, smothered the 49ers offense, limiting them to just 164 yards. Colin Kaepernick had just 121 yards passing, was sacked four times and he was intercepted twice — both by Sherman — as the 49ers were held without a touchdown for the first and only time that season.