Thanksgiving Football Games History, Which Nfl Team Has Won The Most Thanksgiving Games

The first thanksgiving day football game took place in philadelphia pennsylvania on thanksgiving day of 1869 less than two weeks after rutgers defeated princeton in new brunswick new jersey in what is widely recognized as the first intercollegiate football game in the united states and only six years after abraham lincoln declared the first fixed national thanksgiving holiday in 1863.

Thanksgiving menu barefoot contessa. In the nfl the detroit lions and dallas cowboys have been thanksgiving staples. No games were played on the holiday from 1941 44 because of world war ii. Teams some now defunct such as the chicago bears chicago cardinals detroit lions green bay packers pottsville maroons buffalo all americans canton bulldogs frankford yellow jackets and new york giants made up the initial thanksgiving matchups.

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. From the 1934 lions to john maddens turducken watch the greatest moments in nfl thanksgiving history. The detroit lions have a long history of playing on thanksgiving.

Nfl games on thanksgiving have included some great performances and memorable moments over the years. In that year the college football teams at yale and princeton began an annual tradition of playing each other on thanksgiving day. The nfl or at least what it was during the time began hosting thanksgiving games just after the turn of century.

The university of michigan also made it a tradition to play annual. Many saved the holiday for their title games or other big matchups but when the national football league was founded in 1920 it began hosting as many as six thanksgiving contests each year. Thus the football on thanksgiving tradition became firmly established in detroit.

The first professional football games on thanksgiving were played november 25 1920. Nfl networks stacey dales and tom pelissero report on how the 2020 detroit lions will. The legendary harold red grange left made his pro debut for the chicago bears on thanksgiving 1925.

Such a festive intersection of family and football over oh these many years especially for the dallas cowboys franchise and their fans for these past seven decades starting with the very first time they played one of the previous 51 thanksgiving day games at either the cotton bowl or texas stadium or now att stadium for this the 52nd edition of the holiday tradition. With the exception of a six season gap from 1939 to 1944 the thanksgiving day game has been played with no interruptions.