For the first time since 2015, the Green Bay Packers will play on Thanksgiving. And for the first time since 2013, the Packers will go to Detroit to face the Lions on the holiday.
According to the schedule released by Matt Schneidman of The Athletic, Jordan Love and the Packers will play the Lions at Ford Field on Thanksgiving Day (Thursday, Nov. 23). The game is scheduled for the traditional 11:30 a.m. CT kickoff from Detroit.
Some recent Packers history on the holiday: The Packers lost to the Chicago Bears on Thanksgiving Night in 2015. Two years earlier, the Packers lost to the Lions on Thanksgiving Day in 2013.
The last time the Packers won on Thanksgiving was in 2011 (27-15 win over Lions).
Brett Favre won his final Packers-Lions matchup on Thanksgiving in 2007; Aaron Rodgers won his first (2009) and second (2011) but was inactive in 2013 (injury). He lost to Jay Cutler and the Bears at Lambeau Field on Thanksgiving in 2015. Love will get his first starting experience on the holiday in 2023.
The Packers-Lions matchup is the most played Thanksgiving Day game in NFL history. This year’s matchup will be the 22nd of the series (Lions lead, 12-8-1).
The Packers and Lions played on Thanksgiving in 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1984, 1986, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2013.
The Packers’ all-time record on Thanksgiving is 14-20-2.
The Lions have hosted a game on Thanksgiving since 1934.