PFT: Conference Champs Should Host Thanksgiving Day Games

[WoodysGirl]

Posted by Mike Florio on March 23, 2009, 10:56 p.m.

For our Monday entry at SportingNews.com, we offered up ten proposed changes for consideration by the NFL powers-that-be during their current league meetings in California.

One proposed change turned out to be particularly relevant, given that the league announced on Monday afternoon the participants in the Thanksgiving afternoon contests hosted by the Lions and the Cowboys.

For the early game, it’ll be the Packers and the Lions in a matchup that likely will induce slumber even before the ingestion of tryptophan.

For the late game, to be aired this year by CBS, there were two choices in visiting teams — the Chargers and the Raiders.

And the league chose the Raiders.

As reasoned in our SportingNews.com piece, the league doesn’t have to trot out good games on Turkey Day, since we’ll watch whatever the NFL serves up — even if it’s a game of over-60 celebrity flag football.

But why not make Thanksgiving truly special? Just as the first game of the regular season now gives the defending champs a home game in prime time, why not give the two teams that make it to the Super Bowl the pair of home games during Thanksgiving afternoon?

The move instantly would make Thanksgiving football far more compelling, and it would send a message to the fans that the NFL is sufficiently thankful for its audience to not take it for granted.

 

[Canadian BoyzFan]

Or maybe it could honor tradition instead of treat of the week ideas. I do wish they could do better then Oakland, but tough.

 

[AmishCowboy]

Florio can be a Idiot at times, the Cowboys draw big numbers on Thnaksgiving, why change?.

 

[Hypnotoad]

If you can get ratings having the lions play a game i don't know why you'd ever change that.

 

[Boyzmamacita]

Fan appreciation? How about continuing to show the team that everybody watches every time? How's that for being "thankful for its audience?"

 

[casmith07]

Quite simply put, I wholeheartedly disagree with this article.

 

[TellerMorrow34]

I've got a better idea for the writer of the article. Please learn to respect and understand tradition before you start crying about your poor Superbowl teams.

It's tradition to see the Lions and Cowboys on Thanksgiving and that's the way it should stay.

 

[JohnnyHopkins]

I can understand the issue. No one would argue that the Cowboys are a big draw, but the Lions are wretched and have been for a long time. The league is tired of airing their annual whippin. Dallas is essentially caught in the cross-fire.

The issue wouldn't be very relevant if the Lions would just stop being so crappy.

As for this year's games, if the league chose Dallas vs. Raiders over the Chargers, then they can't complain if it backfires on them. I for one am pulling for an absolute demolition of the Raiders.

 

[Boyzmamacita]

I for one am pulling for an absolute demolition of the Raiders.

+1 and Ditto.

 

[Doomsday101]

No one wanted Thanksgiving to start with so Dallas made a deal when we took Thanksgiving and that is it would be a traditional game for us. Jerry needs to hold his ground with the league. This is not the 1st time this issue came up which is why the Thanksgiving Day game at night was added.

 

[Bizwah]

Dallas and Detriot should ALWAYS get the Thanksgiving games.

Years ago the NFL was wanting to have more teams move games to Thanksgiving. No one but Dallas (with the marketing genius of Tex Schramm) stood up to volunteer.

The other teams had their chance......Now that they see the success they want in on it.

 

[ShiningStar]

Anyone of those teams, who cannot afford a critical loss, would go hay wire as soon as they lost and deem teh idea a failure. PLaying on Thanksgiving day is not an advantage for the Cowboys. There is no excuse laid down if they lose having played 4 days before. Travel is annoying, the practices are short as is recovery time.

Bad bad idea.

 

[TNCowboy]

I don't think the issue is playing on Thursday being an advantage any longer, given the # of games that are on Thursday otherwise.

The real issue is other teams are jealous of the national exposure that playing on T'giving gives. Any competitive advantage is minute, as the Cowboys have usually won when they've had good teams, and usually lost when they didn't.

I do think that they ought to make the Thanksgiving games like the Sunday night games. Don't limit the CBS game to choosing between the 2 AFC opponents. Maybe they could work that into the next TV deal.

It was stupidity to not put a good team like the Chargers in Dallas on TV. There's no excuse for that, no matter what excuse they come up with.

 

[Canadian BoyzFan]

Correct me if I am wrong but-We volunteered for Thanksgiving when no one else wanted to. Now it's cool becuase of us and everyone wants to play too.

Too bad, it's ours!!!

 

[Hoofbite]

Whats the issue here? It can't be ratings because Dallas draws the biggest numbers.

Detroit while crappy still draws good numbers on T-day because people just throw on football just for the sake of doing so. I may not watch the Detroit game but I have the TV going because its football and football with a ton of family is great.

I guess a few owners could complain that no matter who is playing the ratings will be good and they want a slice of that. Personally, I think they should shut up.

So whats the deal, advantage? There Thursday games all year. NEXT!

If the league takes T-day away from Dallas, it would be an abomination of everything that is football.

Its pretty simple. Take a look at the Detroit schedule and put their biggest drawing opponent on T-day. End of problem.

 

[Texan_Eph89]

The Lions suck, but either way it's tradition.
All teams were offered the chance to host the thanksgiving games, but only the Lions and the Cowboys took the offer.

Too bad for the other teams, they had their chance and they turned it down.

 

[Yeagermeister]

Anyone of those teams, who cannot afford a critical loss, would go hay wire as soon as they lost and deem teh idea a failure. PLaying on Thanksgiving day is not an advantage for the Cowboys. There is no excuse laid down if they lose having played 4 days before. Travel is annoying, the practices are short as is recovery time.

Bad bad idea.

The last excuse I heard was that it gave Dallas and Detroit a competitive advantage. To that I say :laugh2:

They don't say that about the other Thursday games.

 

[Doomsday101]

Whats the issue here? It can't be ratings because Dallas draws the biggest numbers.

Detroit while crappy still draws good numbers on T-day because people just throw on football just for the sake of doing so. I may not watch the Detroit game but I have the TV going because its football and football with a ton of family is great.

I guess a few owners could complain that no matter who is playing the ratings will be good and they want a slice of that. Personally, I think they should shut up.

So whats the deal, advantage? There Thursday games all year. NEXT!

If the league takes T-day away from Dallas, it would be an abomination of everything that is football.

Its pretty simple. Take a look at the Detroit schedule and put their biggest drawing opponent on T-day. End of problem.

Not sure the rating issue plays a part because in the end the clubs all share that revenue. I would think the networks who carry the game may be more interested in who is on Thanksgiving than owners. There is 1 advantage the Cowboys have and that is the extra time off after the Thanksgiving Day game of course the downside has always been the 2 games in 4 days

 

[Yeagermeister]

Not sure the rating issue plays a part because in the end the clubs all share that revenue. I would think the networks who carry the game may be more interested in who is on Thanksgiving than owners. There is 1 advantage the Cowboys have and that is the extra time off after the Thanksgiving Day game of course the downside has always been the 2 games in 4 days

Any team that plays on a thursday has that advantage

 

[sonnyboy]

Florio can be a Idiot at times, the Cowboys draw big numbers on Thnaksgiving, why change?.

Because Florio Hates the Cowboys. He hates that they are America's team and knows that their annual Thanksgiving Day exposure has played a small part in that.