NEWSLETTER
The Philadelphia Eagles appeared ready to shake up the Thanksgiving menu.
Pro Football Talk’s Michael David Smith shared a complete list of proposed NFL rule changes for the 2019 season, but one that was withdrawn caught my eye more than anything else:
“G-3. Withdrawn, By Philadelphia; to continue the annual tradition of having Dallas and Detroit play on Thanksgiving, provided that one of those clubs host a home game with the other club playing away, and alternating home and away games each subsequent season.”
The Philadelphia Eagles proposed change to the NFL’s annual tradition of having Detroit and Dallas host games on Thanksgiving is an eyebrow raiser. It’s not something that would have otherwise been on our radar, but it’s worth discussing despite Philadelphia pulling it off the table.
Even though a third Thanksgiving game allows other teams to play host, getting even more teams into the Thanksgiving rotation would be fun. Tradition is great and all, but I can’t be the only one who has grown tired of seeing the Lions while preparing Thanksgiving grub. And don’t get me wrong, I love that taking a nap that spans the second and third quarters of the Cowboys games, but I wouldn’t mind not sleeping through what the league wants to pitch as a prime-time game.
It’s a shame the Eagles withdrew their proposal because I would’ve loved to have seen how far it would have gotten down the road before the NFL pulled the plug on it. Surely, Philadelphia isn’t the only team miffed by Detroit and Dallas always hosting Thanksgiving.
As someone who isn’t a fan of the Lions or Cowboys, my only hope is that the Eagles’ request sparks something in one of the other 29 teams (hello, Bears? you interested!?) that gets the ball rolling on a change that could benefit the game. Or maybe everyone else is like me and enjoys napping through the Thanksgiving snooze-fests the Cowboys and Lions provide on an annual basis. Not that there is anything wrong with that.
