# Thanksgiving football in Detroit and other sports traditions that need to end **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [November 22, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955 "2018-11-22T19:51:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/1 "2018-11-22T19:51:44Z")
Let’s be honest——the Lions usually suck and more offer than not their Thanksgiving games suck. I don’t care if they’ve been playing games there on Turkey Day since 1933 or whatever it is: can’t we get a different team to play for once??? What other traditions need to go? Off the top of my head: -Baseball teams celebrating playoff wins or berths with champagne baths in the locker room. Disgusting, gross and embarrassing to see drunk athletes being interviewed -Unworthy Court/field storming. You beat the #1 or 2 ranked team in the country on your home field? Great. Oklahoma beating #9 West Virginia?? Grow up. Stay in your seat. - Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/2 "2018-11-22T20:04:23Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Let’s be honest——the Lions usually suck and more offer than not their Thanksgiving games suck. I don’t care if they’ve been playing games there on Turkey Day since 1933 or whatever it is: can’t we get a different team to play for once??? Ehhh, it’s a fairly harmless tradition, IMO. And, it’s not like it’s the _only_ game on Thanksgiving – the Cowboys, also, always host a game, and there’s been an evening game for a decade or so, as well. ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/3 "2018-11-22T20:10:25Z")
The Gatorade Bath. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/4 "2018-11-22T20:31:02Z")
Why does the Lions game need to go? Like Kenobi said, it’s not the only game on Thanksgiving, and it’s a huge deal in Detroit. Shitty team or not, people have built their turkey day celebrations around this game for generations. You don’t like it, don’t watch it. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/5 "2018-11-22T20:51:36Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Why does the Lions game need to go? Like Kenobi said, it’s not the only game on Thanksgiving, and it’s a huge deal in Detroit. Shitty team or not, people have built their turkey day celebrations around this game for generations. You don’t like it, don’t watch it. But it’s the ONLY game on at the time. There’s so few sports on Thanksgiving Day and as an NFL fan I’m held hostage watching this crap. Schedule better teams! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/6 "2018-11-22T20:54:40Z")
For some reason Lion fans like to spout off that “The Lions always win on Thanksgiving!” Have heard it year after year…Fact is, they have a losing record on Turkey day. 37-40-2 ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/7 "2018-11-22T21:00:03Z")
How about putting an end to the tradition of watching sports on TV on holidays? ---
**Author:** ![MadTheSwine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MadTheSwine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MadTheSwine)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/8 "2018-11-22T21:14:54Z")
How about putting an end to holidays on game days? ---
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 9:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/9 "2018-11-22T21:37:45Z")
> [@MadTheSwine](#): > > How about putting an end to holidays on game days? That’s an tautologically impossible because the highest holidays are Superbowl Sunday and Stanley cup game 7 day. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2018, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/10 "2018-11-22T22:22:56Z")
My father said the Lions always got their own game on Thanksgiving because the NFL knew no one would ever watch them if they weren’t the only game. ---
**Author:** ![russian\_heel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/f05b48/32.png) [@russian\_heel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/russian_heel)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/11 "2018-11-23T02:41:25Z")
> [@Acsenray](#): > > How about putting an end to the tradition of watching sports on TV on holidays? You sound like my Mother-in-Law Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/12 "2018-11-23T03:13:51Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Let’s be honest——the Lions usually suck and more offer than not their Thanksgiving games suck. I don’t care if they’ve been playing games there on Turkey Day since 1933 or whatever it is: can’t we get a different team to play for once???.. The fatal flaw in your complaint is that there is always at least one other team playing on Thanksgiving (and, more recently, three other teams). mmm ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/13 "2018-11-23T03:20:28Z")
The tradition of Thanksgiving games in Detroit (except for the years in Pontiac) is a tradition that should be honored. Thanksgiving football and octopi on the ice, two revered institutions. Things that really should end: Champagne in the clubhouse. Wasteful and makes a mess. The patriotic 7th inning stretch. Takes too much time and interrupts the flow of the game. White House visits for champions. The NIT. Presidential congratulatory phone calls. Super Bowl halftime extravaganzas. Just do a normal halftime and get back to work. ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/14 "2018-11-23T03:20:53Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > But it’s the ONLY game on at the time. There’s so few sports on Thanksgiving Day and as an NFL fan I’m held hostage watching this crap. Schedule better teams! > Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk As pointed out, just don’t watch if you don’t like the choice. If people didn’t like seeing the Lions play, they wouldn’t watch, and the game would be dropped or changed. I’m visiting on the Left Coast; the game is poorly watched as it is, since it’s on at something like 9:30 am. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/15 "2018-11-23T03:25:25Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > Let’s be honest——the Lions usually suck and more offer than not their Thanksgiving games suck. I don’t care if they’ve been playing games there on Turkey Day since 1933 or whatever it is: can’t we get a different team to play for once??? Thursday noon games are a hardship. Better to saddle a shitty team like Detroit with it than a real team. If we could also saddle the Lions with every game in England, I’d vote for that too. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/16 "2018-11-23T05:10:54Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > Why does the Lions game need to go? Like Kenobi said, it’s not the only game on Thanksgiving, and it’s a huge deal in Detroit. Shitty team or not, people have built their turkey day celebrations around this game for generations. You don’t like it, don’t watch it. Any NFL Commissioner who dares suggest the Lions take a few Thanksgivings off will be met with an angry mob of Detroiters outside the league office with torches, pitchforks, and D-cell batteries. It’s more than a big deal. It’s more than a tradition. It’s a quasi-religious event that was blasphemed by the heretical Cowboys of Dallas when they defied the football gods by also playing on Thanksgiving. (Moreover, to add to the outrage, their Thanksgiving game became the holiday’s top draw.) ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 9:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/17 "2018-11-23T09:20:40Z")
Honestly Lions fans haven’t had much to look forward to for a long time. Let them have Thanksgiving. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/18 "2018-11-23T15:17:52Z")
Plus, the Lions have been pretty competitive on Thanksgiving since Matthew Stafford has been their QB. Heck, yesterdays game was pretty damn good between them and the Bears. I heard an announcer say before the game that Stafford was undefeated on Thanksgiving as the Lions QB, until yesterday. Don’t see how that can be true though, since Stafford has been the Lions QB since 2009 and the win streak they had going started in 2013 and ended in 2017. ---
**Author:** ![Anglachel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a5b964/32.png) [@Anglachel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anglachel)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/19 "2018-11-23T16:25:30Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > -Unworthy Court/field storming. You beat the #1 or 2 ranked team in the country on your home field? Great. Oklahoma beating #9 West Virginia?? Grow up. Stay in your seat. No chance that Oklahoma (Sooners) storms the field in that scenario. Now Oklahoma State (Cowboys), sadly that’s another story. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2018, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955/20 "2018-11-23T17:06:21Z")
The #1 sports tradition that needs to end is the post 9/11 hyper patriotism, in particular, ‘God Bless America’ at baseball games. The Lions and Cowboys on Thanksgiving used to be a favorite target of sports talk radio. Now that the NFL has frequently scheduled division games on Thanksgiving as well as the Thursday night game, it hasn’t been as big of a deal. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/thanksgiving-football-in-detroit-and-other-sports-traditions-that-need-to-end/824955.md?page=2)