The Detroit Lions’ game starts at 12:30 p.m. The (EST) Thanksgiving start time has been discontinued.
As reported by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell on The Pat McAfee Show on April 25, the Lions’ yearly Thanksgiving game will begin at 1 p.m. this year rather than at its typical kickoff time of 12:30.
The departure from tradition occurs due to the NFL’s goal to transform Thanksgiving Day to resemble a typical NFL Sunday, featuring games at 1 p.m., 4:25 p.m., and during primetime. Each year, the Dallas Cowboys conduct the second match of the multi-billion-dollar league’s Thanksgiving tripleheader.
The team talks about the interaction between Brian Daboll and Shedeur.
The Lions have held a Thanksgiving game annually since 1934, except for a six-year period due to World War II (1939-1944). Detroit has a 38-45-2 all-time record on the holiday, having defeated the Chicago Bears, 23-20, in their latest Thanksgiving matchup last year.
The 2024 version of the competition had a wild conclusion. With time running out, Bears quarterback Caleb Williams made an incomplete pass from the Lions’ 41-yard line, following a sack on the prior play with roughly 30 seconds left. After the Williams sack, Chicago – having one timeout remaining – was unable to snap the ball again until approximately 0:06. It was a gross mishandling of the game clock, leading to the firing of then-Bears head coach Matt Eberflus the following day.
Before last year’s victory against the Bears, the Lions had not achieved a Thanksgiving win since 2016. That win – of the 16-13 kind – was achieved against the Minnesota Vikings, with Matthew Stafford at the helm for Detroit.
The Jared Goff-led Lions will discover their Thanksgiving Day opponent for this autumn on May 14, during the NFL’s official