Best NFL Thanksgiving Day Performances
By Jeremiah Delgado
The turkey's in the oven and there is football to be watched all day. Thanksgiving Day football has been a staple on the holiday for roughly 100 years beginning with the Detroit Lions. Here are some of the best performances we've ever seen on the holiday in NFL history.
Sterling Sharpe, WR, Green Bay Packers-November 24, 1994
Sterling Sharpe had a huge Thanksgiving Day performance with 126 receiving yards and four touchdown catches. This game between the Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys was a good one. The final score was 42-31 in favor of the Cowboys.
Peyton Manning, QB, Indianapolis Colts-November 25, 2004
There is not a lot of yardage behind this performance, but it just wasn't necessary for Peyton Manning. His performance includes 236 passing yards and a completion percentage of 82 percent. He also threw for six touchdown passes, which helped beat down the Detroit Lions 41-9.
Randy Moss, WR, Minnesota Vikings-November 26, 1998
It was quite a rookie campaign for Randy Moss as he finished the season with 17 touchdowns and over 1,300 yards. His best performance that season might have been against the Dallas Cowboys on Thanksgiving afternoon. He caught just three passes for 153 yards and three touchdowns.
Every time he touched the ball it was a touchdown, put it that way.
O.J. Simpson, RB, Buffalo Bills-November 25, 1976
This was quite impressive for a 29-year-old running back leaving his prime. Simpson had an incredible game and ran for 273 yards en route to breaking the record for most rushing yards in a game.
He also scored twice and averaged 9.41 yards per carry. Every time he was handed the ball, the team got a first down.
Barry Sanders, RB, Detroit Lions-November 27, 1997
This list would not be complete without this great performance. Barry Sanders destroyed the Chicago Bears on Thanksgiving Day. To be fair, Sanders destroyed just about every team that season on his way to rushing for over 2,000 yards.
He rushed for 167 yards and three touchdowns on just 19 carries. The Lions stomped the Bears 55-20 and Sanders lead the way for them.
Hopefully, someone has a performance to rival one of these players. If so, it will be a fun day for football.