Turkey has been known to put people to sleep, but the NFL’s Thanksgiving Day schedule won’t make that too much of an issue.
The NFL’s annual holiday action will now feature only two games Thursday. Each contest features teams that might be better off tanking than pursuing a playoff spot. Records can be misleading, though, as the 3-7 Cowboys and Washington Football Team will play for the temporary NFC East lead in the middle game on Thanksgiving. The Lions are in action as always, too, hosting the Texans. But the Ravens and Steelers have seen their Thanksgiving night game postponed to Sunday afternoon due to COVID-19-related reasons.
MORE: Watch NFL Thanksgiving games live with fuboTV (7-day free trial)
Detroit began playing games on Thanksgiving in 1934, and Dallas began in 1966. In 2006, the league added a night game that usually features divisional rivalries on center stage, but for the first time since ’06, the night game won’t be played after the NFL rescheduled Pittsburgh-Baltimore.
The nightcap looked to be the best game of the day, with Lamar Jackson facing off with Ben Roethlisberger. Now, you’ll have to get excited about sub-.500 teams. As long as there’s a winner in Cowboys-Washington, there’ll be a team leapfrogging the Eagles for first place in the NFC East.
The main reason to tune into the opener Thursday is to watch two good quarterbacks play when Matthew Stafford leads the Lions (4-6) against Deshaun Watson and the Texans (3-7) in a matchup of one team that might fire its head coach against another that already has.
Here’s everything you need to know about watching the NFL’s three Thanksgiving Day games in 2020.
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Thanksgiving football schedule 2020
Here’s the full NFL schedule for Thanksgiving 2020, plus final scores and how to watch every game live.
| Game | Kickoff time | TV channel |
| Texans (3-7) at Lions (4-6) | 12:30 p.m. ET | CBS, fuboTV |
| WFT (3-7) at Cowboys (3-7) | 4:30 p.m. ET | Fox, fuboTV |
How to watch, live-stream NFL Thanksgiving games
Here’s how to catch every game on Thanksgiving Day.
Lions vs. Texans TV channel
(12:30 p.m. ET kickoff)
- National: CBS
- Houston: KHOU
- Detroit: WWJ
- Stream: fuboTV
It’ll be CBS’ top broadcast team calling this game. That means Tony Romo and his approximately $1 million per game salary will provide the color commentary alongside Jim Nantz. They’ll be joined by sideline reporter Tracy Wolfson.
Long-time official Gene Steratore serves as the CBS broadcast’s rules analyst.
Cowboys vs. Washington TV channel
(4:30 p.m. ET kickoff)
- National: Fox
- Dallas: KDFW
- Washington, D.C.: WTTG
- Stream: fuboTV
You’ll see Fox’s No. 1 broadcast team on your televisions with the Cowboys playing on Thanksgiving. Play-by-play man Joe Buck will be joined by former Dallas quarterback Troy Aikman.
Fox has gone with a pair of sideline reporters on its top team this season, with both Kristina Pink and Erin Andrews working that rule. Mike Pereira is the network’s rules analyst.
Steelers vs. Ravens
The NFL has postponed Pittsburgh-Baltimore from Thursday night to Sunday afternoon due to a COVID-19 outbreak on the Ravens. As of Wednesday afternoon, the league had yet to announce a time/broadcaster for the rescheduled game.
NFL scores Thanksgiving 2020
| Final scores |
| Texans at Lions |
| WFT at Cowboys |
| Ravens at Steelers |