The NFL schedule is officially out, and with it, a new addition to the Holiday Games slate the night before Thanksgiving. While usually more football is a positive, the NFL Thanksgiving Eve Game is too much of a good thing. For years, the league has added more games throughout the week, introducing the Thanksgiving night game, Saturday regular-season and playoff games, Thursday night football (almost every week), Monday Night doubleheaders, early-morning international bouts, 3 Christmas games, and Black Friday matchups. This year, the Rams will host the Packers in the inaugural November NFC battle, but perhaps the NFL has lost the script with this one.
Thanksgiving and football have become synonymous, dating as far back as the 1930s and becoming a legitimate tradition by the 1970s. As a nod to the teams that originally played the games, Dallas and Detroit are guaranteed a spot every year. Across America, whether a focal point or just the background noise, football is a part of this amazing holiday. There is an atmosphere during Thanksgiving week that is different from that of all other weeks in the league. From sitting in the living room with family, to eating mashed potatoes and turkey, watching the Lions and Cowboys once again, it is the tradition that truly makes it special.
The Addition of the NFL Thanksgiving Eve Game Takes Away From The Tradition
In 2023, a Black Friday game was introduced for the first time, extending the holiday matchups and giving fans more football. The NFL could not have hoped for a better result, seeing viewership increase every year. Without question, from the business perspective, more football seems to always be the answer. Naturally, fans of the game want more of the game. On the other hand, from a player safety and health perspective, adding more mid-week games may not be the best move, but it seems to have little influence on the league’s decision. The National Football League is a business first and foremost, and money makes the decisions.
Fans are split across social media, some embracing more football as a good thing while others are concerned that the NFL is ruining the beauty of the Thanksgiving matchups. Unfortunately, it is this business-minded decision that kills the magic of the annual Thanksgiving Day Game. It is no longer a special set aside for the tradition of the historic game, but a revolving window for 10 teams getting to play across three days, where Thanksgiving Day is just another game day. There is a perfection to setting aside the holiday games that will become lost in a sea of more and more contests throughout the week each year.
The addition of the Thanksgiving Eve Game will doubtless bring the league more views, especially with it being the only major sporting event taking place that Wednesday evening. The cost will be the erosion of what has made Thanksgiving Football so special. What was once a cherished tradition, woven into the fabric of the holiday now runs the risk of being blended into just another game of the season. While the eve matchup will boost viewership in the short term, it dampens the magic and uniqueness that has set the Thanksgiving Day Games apart for generations.
