The NFL has played games on Thanksgiving since the league’s inception in 1920, meaning this tradition dates back more than 100 years. While the Detroit Lions first adopted the Thanksgiving tradition in 1934, the Dallas Cowboys joined them in 1966.
But how did this come about? Let’s examine why the Cowboys play on Thanksgiving, their all-time record on the holiday, and who Dallas is facing this year.
Why Do the Cowboys Play on Thanksgiving?
After the Lions had success generating national attention and fan interest by playing every year on Thanksgiving, Dallas decided to follow suit.
Cowboys president and GM Tex Schramm came up with the idea in 1966, when Dallas played its first Thanksgiving game against the Cleveland Browns.
The Cowboys won the game 26-14 in front of a crowd of about 80,000 fans.
Thus, the tradition was born.
Why Did the Cowboys Not Play on Thanksgiving in 1975 and 1977?
The Cowboys continued their newfound Thanksgiving tradition until 1975, when NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle wanted to experiment with playing the then-St. Louis Cardinals on Thanksgiving in place of the Cowboys. That led to Dallas not playing on Thanksgiving in 1975 and 1977.
At the time, the Cardinals were known to play some of the league’s most exciting games. Head coach Don Coryell’s unit was affectionately known as the “Cardiac Cards” due to the team’s propensity for playing high-octane matchups that went down to the wire.
The experiment, however, didn’t yield much success. St. Louis was blown out in each of the two contests, prompting Rozelle to give the honor back to Dallas. Schramm was more than happy to take the game back on, and the agreement between the Cowboys and Rozelle was that Dallas could play at home on Thanksgiving annually.
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The Cowboys haven’t missed a Thanksgiving game since.
Dallas’ Thanksgiving game is usually the most watched game of the NFL regular season. In 2023, the Cowboys and Washington Commanders averaged 41.8 million viewers, making it the second-most-watched NFL regular season game on record. The only game with more viewers was the previous year’s Thanksgiving showdown between the Cowboys and New York Giants, which averaged 42.06 million viewers.
Cowboys’ Thanksgiving Day Record
With a Thanksgiving Day record of 34-22-1, the Cowboys have had a lot of success in Thanksgiving games. (That one tie came against the San Francisco 49ers in 1969.)
Dallas was undefeated in their annual tradition until 1972 when they lost to the Miami Dolphins 24-7.
With Prescott at the helm, their record is 4-3. This year, Dallas was without Prescott, who had season-ending hamstring surgery. Cooper Rush started, leading the Cowboys to a 27-20 victory over the New York Giants.