The NFL is absolutely stacking the Thanksgiving slate this season, according to reports.
The Buffalo Bills will host the Kansas City Chiefs on NBC on Thanksgiving night, according to NFL insider Jordan Schultz. That comes after the Detroit Lions open the day hosting the Chicago Bears on CBS, also per Schultz, and the Dallas Cowboys host the Philadelphia Eagles on Fox, which was formally announced Monday.
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The NFL is also having a dedicated Thanksgiving Eve game for the first time, with the Green Bay Packers visiting the Los Angeles Rams on Netflix.
The full NFL schedule release show will be Thursday at 8 p.m. ET on NFL Network and ESPN.
Bills-Chiefs is always a blockbuster regular-season matchup, though this one features an early cloud hanging over it in the form of Patrick Mahomes’ health. His rehab is reportedly going well, and there will be plenty of time to get back up to speed before visiting Buffalo, but if he’s not the Mahomes of old then this matchup loses its sizzle. Still, it’ll be intriguing to watch the Chiefs deal with the Bills in their brand new stadium.
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That’s four games featuring eight teams that all are expected to be playoff contenders, not to mention some pretty major draws. Things don’t always play out the way it seems they will on paper, especially in the NFL, but there’s no denying the NFL is throwing its scheduling weight behind the Thanksgiving holiday.
There’s also the Black Friday game, which hasn’t been announced yet but is a good bet to feature at least one strong draw.
What does that leave for Week 12 Sunday? Of course there are still buzzy teams left over, like the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks, the reigning AFC champion New England Patriots, the popular Pittsburgh Steelers, and more.
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Even with options like those, it may well be a thinner slate that weekend overall. The NFL has clearly decided it’s OK with that. While everyone is stuffing their faces on Thanksgiving Eve and Day, the league probably will be too.
