Here’s Why the Lions and Cowboys Always Play on Thanksgiving

Every year, many families across the country sit down for the Thanksgiving meal and then watch the NFL.

And every year, those families see two of the same teams. Ever since 1934, the Detroit Lions have hosted a Thanksgiving Day game, while the Dallas Cowboys have hosted a game ever since 1966. In 2006, the NFL introduced a third prime-time game.

So how did the NFL choose which teams get Thanksgiving Day treatment? Let’s take a closer look.

Detroit Lions

Football on Thanksgiving already had a lengthy history in the United States by the time the Lions played their first contest—college games date back to the 1800s, shortly after the sport was invented.

The Lions first got involved in 1934. The year before, the Lions were the Portsmouth Spartans, based in Ohio. With the country in a depression and the Spartans struggling after the departure of Earl “Dutch” Clark (who was one of their best players), the team had a hard time getting fans into the stands.

Detroit-based businessman George Richards, who had broken into the radio business by purchasing WJR, bought the team for “between $15,000 and $16,500,” according to ProFootballResearchers, and relocated them to Detroit. (The move proved savvy: Six years later, an ailing Richards sold the team for $200,000.)

Richards offered enough money to bring Clark back. He scheduled a Thanksgiving home game for the Lions in their first season in Detroit against the Bears, to help boost interest and attendance, and he used his connections with NBC to make sure the game was broadcast across 94 radio stations nationwide. The 12-0 Bears defeated the 10-2 Lions 19-16, and a holiday tradition was born.

This year, the Lions take on the Green Bay Packers. At 8-2 the Lions have the second-best record in the NFC and lead the NFC North by 2.5 games. The Packers are 4-6. Kickoff takes place at 12:30 p.m. ET.

Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys joined the Lions as a Thanksgiving Day tradition in 1966 under the direction of Tex Schramm, the team’s original president and general manager, who is widely credited for turning the Cowboys into “America’s Team.”

With the success of the Lions’ Thanksgiving game already well established by the mid-1960s, the NFL wanted a second game. Schramm volunteered the Cowboys under the condition that the team would get to host the game every year. That gave the Cowboys short-week home-field advantage and the potential to capitalize on a day when people had little else to do.

The Cowboys did not have the same stranglehold on Thanksgiving as the Lions did at first. The Cardinals, who at the time played in St. Louis, were able to briefly wrest control of hosting Thanksgiving’s second game away from the Cowboys in 1975 and 1977 because of their reputation for late-game heroics. But the Cardinals were blown out in both of their Thanksgiving tryouts, and the league went back to the Cowboys.

“It was a dud in St. Louis,” Schramm told the Chicago Tribune. “[NFL Commissioner] Pete [Rozelle] asked if we’d take it back. I said only if we get it permanently. It’s something you have to build as a tradition. He said, ‘It’s yours forever.'”

This year, the Cowboys face the Washington Commanders. The Cowboys are 7-3, which is good for second in the NFC East, behind the league-leading Philadelphia Eagles. The Commanders are 4-7. Kickoff takes place at 4:30 p.m.

The Day’s Third Game

In 2006, the NFL added one extra game for the prime-time slot. That game gives the league flexibility since it isn’t tied to conferences or traditions. This season, the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks face off in a crucial NFC West contest, as the Seahawks trail the 49ers by one game in the division standings. Kickoff is at 8:20 p.m.