Thanksgiving Football: TV Schedule, Traditions, Playoff Picture

ACROSS AMERICA — Thanksgiving Day football has been a tradition in the United States since 1934, and not even the coronavirus will put a stop to it in 2020.

This year, a double-header awaits football fans celebrating the late November holiday at home or with family. First, the Houston Texans will visit the Detroit Lions, then the Washington Football Team will play at the Dallas Cowboys.

Originally, a Thanksgiving night game was scheduled between the Baltimore Ravens and Pittsburgh Steelers, but that game has been postponed from Thursday to Saturday due to several Ravens players testing positive for the virus this week.

Here is what to know about Thanksgiving football in 2020.

Will Fans Attend The Games?

More than 30,000 fans are expected to be in attendance at Cowboys Stadium for Dallas' home game against Washington, according to a report from the Richmond Times-Dispatch. In the Cowboys' most recent home game, which came against the Steelers, 31,700 tickets were sold. That's believed to be the most tickets sold for any sporting event during the coronavirus pandemic, the newspaper reported.

A recent emergency order enacted in Michigan means no fans will be in attendance for the Lions game, the Detroit Free Press has reported.

The Steelers will only allow a limited number of fans inside Heinz Field for their Saturday night game against the Ravens, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

TV Schedule

• Houston Texans at Detroit Lions, 12:30 p.m. ET, CBS
• Washington Football Team at Dallas Cowboys, 4:30 p.m. ET, FOX

Playoff Implications

Only the Ravens-Steelers game that was originally scheduled for Thursday includes two teams likely headed for the postseason, but the outcomes of all three pre-Sunday games this week could actually impact the NFL playoff picture.

At 10-0, the Steelers are the only undefeated team in the NFL. On Saturday they will host the 6-4 Ravens, who are in the middle of the AFC Wild Card race. The Steelers need to win to stay ahead of the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs (9-1) in the race for the top seed and bye week in the AFC.

The first game has the least playoff implications, as both the Texans and Lions sport losing records.

The Washington Football Team and Cowboys both have losing records as well; but since both play in the NFC East, the worst division in football, there's hope in both the nation's capital and Dallas for a playoff spot since the winner of every division is guaranteed one. Right now, the Philadelphia Eagles lead the division with a 3-6-1 record. The Washington Football Team and Cowboys both sit at 3-7, so Thursday's winner will take the lead in the division.

Tradition

The Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys host Thanksgiving Day games every year.

Why the Lions host: In 1934, Lions owner George A. Richards scheduled a Thanksgiving Day game as a gimmick to get more fans in the stands when the team was struggling with attendance. It worked perfectly, as the inaugural Thanksgiving Day game against the Chicago Bears was a sellout. The team has hosted a game on the holiday ever since.

Why the Cowboys host: In 1966, before the Cowboys achieved "America's Team" popularity, general manager Tex Schramm thought hosting the game would draw some attendance. Like the Lions, the Cowboys sold out the game — against the Cleveland Browns — that year, and a second Thanksgiving Day tradition was born.

A third Thanksgiving Day game, held at night, was added to the schedule in 2006. The teams featured in the night game change every year.

5 Memorable Thanksgiving Day Games

1962: Called by some as the "greatest game in Lions history," the Lions won 26-14 over Vince Lombardi's Green Bay Packers at Tiger Stadium in 1962. It was the only game the juggernaut Packers would lose all year.

1980: One game Lions fans would not like to remember came in 1980, when they surrendered a 17-3 lead to the Bears, losing in overtime, 23-17. At the time, this was the shortest overtime game ever because the Bears' Dave Williams returned the opening overtime kickoff for a touchdown to give Chicago the win.

1998: The reason why the coin flip is called before the referee throws it into the air dates back to the 1998 Thanksgiving Day game in Detroit. While the coin was in the air to determine which team would get the ball first in overtime, it sounded like Jerome Bettis of the visiting Pittsburgh Steelers said "heads" but quickly changed his call to "tails." It was tails, but referee Phil Luckett said he called heads. So the Lions got the ball and scored to win the game. Bettis would get the last laugh in his hometown, winning the Super Bowl there in his final NFL season seven years later.

1998: In the late afternoon game in 1998, it was a coming-out party for Minnesota Vikings rookie wide receiver Randy Moss. Moss had three catches, all for touchdowns, and 163 yards as the Vikings beat the Cowboys in a shootout, 46-36, in Dallas. The Vikings went 15-1 that year but lost in the NFC Championship Game to the Atlanta Falcons.

2004: Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, during his first record-breaking year for touchdown passes in a season, threw six of them on Thanksgiving Day in the Colts' 41-9 win over the Lions.