TGS SPECIAL REPORT... THANKSGIVING FB NOTEBOOK
by Bruce Marshall, Goldsheet.com Editor
Still, we brace every year for the commentary from many about the dynamics of Thanksgiving football. In particular, that Turkey Day must be a significant advantage for the recurring hosts Lions and Cowboys. (The NFL added a third game to the Thanksgiving mix back in 2006 and has been rotating the nightcap among various home teams the past 15 seasons). Yet it might surprise many that the opposite has tended to be true. In the case of Detroit, it has often lost, consistently so, on Sundays and the occasional Mondays over the decades, but its mark during recent memory on Thanksgiving has been particularly tepid; the Lions have failed to cover the past four years on the holiday, and while they did cover the four previous Thanksgivings, they didn’t cover any in the nine preceding Turkey Days. At 4-13 vs. the spread the last 17 on Thanksgiving, playing at home on the holiday doesn’t seem like it‘s been much of an edge for Detroit. But while Lions shortcomings on any day of the week are usually not big news, the fact that Dallas has struggled on Thanksgiving might come as a bit of a surprise. But struggled the Cowboys have, especially in recent years, dropping nine of their last ten vs. the number on the holiday, the only cover across tthat span in 2018 when squeezing out a narrow spread W (winning 31-23 as 7½-point chalk) gainst the injury-hampered, then-called Redskins.
Over the past 15 seasons, the various other home teams in Thanksgiving nightcaps have tended to fare better than the Lions and Cowboys (during last year's Covid season, only the Lions and Cowboys games were played on Thanksgiving). But as far as Detroit and Dallas have been concerned at least, playing at home on the holiday hasn’t translated into much success in recent years.
Over the past 15 seasons, the various other home teams in Thanksgiving nightcaps have tended to fare better than the Lions and Cowboys (during last year's Covid season, only the Lions and Cowboys games were played on Thanksgiving). But as far as Detroit and Dallas have been concerned at least, playing at home on the holiday hasn’t translated into much success in recent years.
Still, Thanksgiving football retains the capacity to stir the souls of most football fans, and for those of a certain age, that connection to Detroit in particular is a bit special. For years, along with the annual Macy’s Day Parade each Thanksgiving in New York City, and the Gimbel’s Parade in Philadelphia, the JL Hudson’s Parade in Detroit was featured on CBS each Thanksgiving morning, when there would usually be mention of the upcoming Lions game to be telecast. (After the AFL-NFL merger, NBC would telecast the Detroit Thanksgiving game from 1970-72, before CBS next aired the Lions in ‘73). Though the Hudson’s department stores ended their sponsorship of the event in 1979, the parade continues to this day.

While the ‘62 game has resonated for a couple of generations, for sheer drama and backdrop, the following year’s game in ‘63 was its own landmark. Consider the calendar, and the Thanksgiving date, November 28. Then remember the year...1963. Indeed, the nation was still reeling from the assassination of JFK just six days earlier in Dallas, and was collectively hoping for something, anything, that would hint at a return to normalcy. Thus, sports became a great national healer in a time of mourning. And while it’s not incorrect to consider the following week’s Army-Navy game as the moment the nation really got moving again (as important a game as we can recall in the TGS era, and an all-time classic matchup we hope to examine in more detail soon), we have always thought the Packers-Lions game on Thanksgiving helped begin the nation’s road to recovery.
Though not an artistic masterpiece, the Packers and Lions delivered just what was prescribed, a tense and drama-filled battle that the nation badly needed after the trauma of those preceding days. The unique acoustics of Tiger Stadium, due to its seating configuration, accounted for a slightly delayed, rumbling roar from the crowd on telecasts, adding further dramatic texture to the TV presentation.

The tension continued into the second half. Finally, Green Bay seemed like it was ready to forge an advantage when Starr, without the benefit of an effective infantry (rugged FB Jim Taylor was held to 28 YR, and Pitts, despite his TD, would end with 0 YR on 8 carries; the Pack would only gain 31 on the ground all day), uncorked a long drive from his own 2-yard line to the Lion 3 as the third quarter moved into the fourth quarter. The march, however, would stall, and when J. Kramer (who replaced Hornung as the PK in ‘63) pushed wide a 10-yarder (that’s right, 10 yards! Remember, goal posts were at the goal line in ‘63), the score stayed at 6-6. Indeed, it was not a day for kickers, though their inconsistencies were part of the game in that era; Walker would miss three FG tries from 42, 52, and 40 yards, while Kramer missed from 49 as well as the 10-yarder. But Starr made his next possession count as, after a Lions punt, the Pack would roll 62 yards with Starr passing to TE Ron Kramer for the go-ahead TD from 7 yards out. With 9:06 to play, Green Bay seemingly had control with a 13-6 lead.
The tie, however, created an intriguing possibility for a West playoff if the Packers could win out and hope someone else could beat Chicago. “This makes it no different than it was before,” Lombardi tried to rationalize after the game. “Somebody still has to beat the Bears. The only thing it means is that if they lose one and we win two, we’ll have to have a playoff.” Chicago would subsequently tie the Vikings, but not lose, ending 11-1-2 vs. the Pack’s 11-2-1 to claim the West by a narrow margin, before beating the Giants 14-10 in a brutal title game at an arctic Wrigley Field.
The 13-13 draw left neither team satisfied but gave the nation what it badly needed. Which is why, for those of us of the TGS generation, Thanksgiving football memories are a bit special.
