They've been playing football on Thanksgiving for longer than anyone can remember, before the National Football League even existed. The first official Thanksgiving Day football game was played in 1876, between Yale and Princeton. It was a big social event, as it marked the unofficial start of the winter social season in New York City. Over the next two decades, college and high school football games played on Thanksgiving became common throughout the country. The NFL, which was founded in 1920, saw that popularity and quickly jumped on the Thanksgiving football bandwagon. In 1934, the Detroit Lions were playing in their first year in the league. They were winning but not getting big crowds. In an effort to try and help increase attendance, Lions owner George A. Richards, hosted the NFL's first Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit in 1934. At that the time, nobody knew that he was starting a tradition. Richards happened to also own a Detroit radio station. Using his industry contacts, he was able to get a deal in place for the Lions/Bears game to be broadcast on 94 radio stations, coast to coast. The 1934 game was witnessed in person by 26,000 fans, the Lions' first ever sellout. It was a classic which Chicago won 19-16. Leo Macdonell of the Detroit Times described it as follows: "It was a heartbreak for the Lions and their followers, and with a heavy heart they feast over the crumbs of a game that put the Detroit team out of the running for the championship honors." Though the game didn't go Detroit's way, the event was such a success that the Lions have hosted a game every Thanksgiving since, with the exception of the World War II years. Decades later, America's Team got in the act. The Cowboys saw how popular the Detroit games were and in 1966 they decided to try playing on Thanksgiving. It was also a smashing success and they've been doing it every year since, except 1975 and 1977. (The St. Louis Cardinals were given those games to try and boost their national exposure.) Nowadays, when many think about traditions associated with Thanksgiving, Detroit and Dallas football games are right up there with the turkey and the pumpkin pie. 2024 Detroit and Chicago kick off this year's Thanksgiving Day 3-game pro slate, the Lions favored by double-digits. That's followed by a game between the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Giants. The evening game features the Green Bay Packers hosting the Miami Dolphins. There's also one college football game that day, Memphis taking on Tulane. Let's take a closer look at the NFL games. Chicago at Detroit Line: Lions -10.5, 48.5The Lions are one of the very best teams in the league this year. Their 10-1 record ranks number one in the NFC and tied with KC for first place overall. They've scored way more points than any team in football and have a dominating 360-183 scoring advantage in their 11 games. The wide margins of victory have led to a 9-2 record versus the spread. The Lions have now won nine straight games. That happens to be their longest winning streak since the 1934 Lions team (mentioned above) won 10 straight. Off 5 straight losses, the Bears (4-7 SU and 5-4-2 ATS) are going the other way. Three of those 5 losses, including each of the past 2, were by a field goal or less. These teams faced each other last Thanksgiving Day and the Lions won 31-26, as 7.5 point favorites. The Bears were up 26-14 in the fourth quarter before Detroit scored the game's final 17 points. New York at DallasLine: Cowboys -3.5, 38Most would have assumed that at least one of these teams would be in contention in the NFC East. That's not the case. The Eagles (9-2) are 2 games ahead of Washington for the division lead while the Cowboys (4-7 SU and 3-7-1 ATS) and Giants (2-9 SU and 2-8-1 ATS) are a distant 3rd and 4th. Teams in this division all hate each other and these two are no exception. Even with their poor records, Dallas/NY games are always important to both teams. The Cowboys defeated the Giants 20-15 in September. That was their 7th straight win in the series. That September game featured Prescott and Jones at quarterback but neither will be playing Thursday. Prescott is out for the season with injury and Jones was recently released. Dallas comes in off an upset win at Washington, backup QB Cooper Rush leading the way. The Giants began the post Daniel Jones era by getting blown out by Tampa. Miami at Green Bay Line: Packers -3, 47.5Here's a game which really means something. The Dolphins are still only 5-6 (SU and ATS) but they have won 3 straight games. They still won't catch the Bills to win the division but they now have a have a 31.9% chance to make the playoffs. The Packers (8-3 SU and 5-6 ATS) are also on a roll. They smashed San Francisco last week and have won 6 of their last 7. They likely won't overtake both Minnesota and Detroit to win the division but they do now have a 92.7% chance of making the playoffs. Based on those playoff odds, one could say that this is a big game for Green Bay but an even bigger one for Miami. The Packers have won the past three meetings, most recently a 26-20 win at Miami in 2022. Before that was a 31-12 Packer home win in November 2018. Can the warm weather Dolphins win a late November game at Lambeau? Tune in Thursday night to find out! Enjoy the holiday everyone. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your families ... Will Rogers
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