2008 Woodie Awards
When it comes to November traditions, keep the turkeys and the Lions
Matt Spillane
Issue date: 11/30/06 Section: Features
However, even with the sentiment to rotate teams playing on Thanksgiving, I can see the reasons to keep Dallas and Detroit. Football on Thanksgiving is clearly a great tradition, and part of that tradition is the Cowboys and Lions. According to Wikipedia, the two teams have hosted Thanksgiving Day games almost each season since 1966, and to be honest, it would be weird to just do away with that ritual. I guess in a way, football fans kind of look forward to seeing those two old squads play each year. It is just ingrained in the practice of Thanksgiving, and something that NFL fans are used to. This year, though, marked the first time that three games were played on the national holiday. In addition to the two traditional games, the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos played a night game. Unfortunately, it was only broadcast on the NFL Network, so a limited number of people were able to watch it. This may be a sign of future change, or just a ploy to market the NFL Network. We will see what the league decides to do with the Thanksgiving tradition next year.
If the league does decide to keep the Cowboys and Lions as the two annual hosts, then will someone please tell them to schedule good opponents? I mean, Detroit is bad enough as it is, we do not need to see them play the Miami Dolphins too. How about New England or Chicago, whom they play twice each year? The Cowboys also played a weak team in the Tampa Bay Bucs. The league has to have better foresight, especially when the Cowboys were predicted to have a good year. Why can't we see a Cowboys-Giants game? The two teams competing for the division title play each other twice a year, and the league could not fit one of them in on Thanksgiving? Maybe fans will want to keep the two traditional teams playing on the holiday if they played meaningful games that featured some good competition, or they should rotate teams playing that day. Either way would work, so hopefully the league execs get it right next year.
If the league does decide to keep the Cowboys and Lions as the two annual hosts, then will someone please tell them to schedule good opponents? I mean, Detroit is bad enough as it is, we do not need to see them play the Miami Dolphins too. How about New England or Chicago, whom they play twice each year? The Cowboys also played a weak team in the Tampa Bay Bucs. The league has to have better foresight, especially when the Cowboys were predicted to have a good year. Why can't we see a Cowboys-Giants game? The two teams competing for the division title play each other twice a year, and the league could not fit one of them in on Thanksgiving? Maybe fans will want to keep the two traditional teams playing on the holiday if they played meaningful games that featured some good competition, or they should rotate teams playing that day. Either way would work, so hopefully the league execs get it right next year.
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