Top 10 Thanksgiving football games in NFL history

From 1934 to date, except for the period from 1939 to 1944 due to World War II, there have been games on Thanksgiving Day in the NFL and in that long period of time there have been boring, average and memorable games, here are what, in our opinion, are the 10 best Thanksgiving games in the history of the NFL:

10.- 2012: Washington Redskins 38, Dallas Cowboys 31

This was the show of the once great prospect Robert Griffin III, who that year led the now called Wahington Football Team to victory, "RG3" threw three touchdown passes in the first half and put the capital up 28-3, Tony Romo tried to come back at the end but fell short.

9.- 1980: Chicago Bears 23, Detroit Lions 17 (OT)

Our first overtime game, the era of Walter Payton's dominance with the historic Bears, but this game had great excitement, first because Chicago was down by 14 points in the fourth period and tied it and then because it took only 16 seconds of overtime to resolve it (a record for that time), Dave Williams returned the kickoff 95 yards to the end zone.

8.- 2010 New Orleans Saints 30, Dallas Cowboys 27

There was not much optimism for "America's Team" who had had a horrible season with a 3-8 record up to that point, with Tony Romo injured, the quarterback was Jon Kitna and the interim head coach was Jason Garrett, yes the same Garrett who was fired today as offensive coordinator of the New York Giants. The Saints led 17-0 in the first quarter, but Dallas showed pride and managed to rally to take a 27-23 lead into the final quarter. New Orleans ultimately avoided the biggest comeback in Thanksgiving history.

7.- 2012: Houston Texans 34, Detroit Lions 31 (OT)

An absolute offensive spectacle by land and by air that noon in the "Motor City", for many the two best receivers of the moment faced each other and both produced at their height, Andre Johnson of Houston with 188 yards and Calvin Johnson of Detroit with 140 yards and a touchdown, in the end the Texans took the win in the extra time and closed the day with the best record in the NFL (10-1).

6.- 1994: Green Bay Packers 31, Dallas Cowboys 42

The name of Jason Garrett and the Cowboys Thanksgiving game will always be closely linked, that day, star player Troy Aikman and reserve Rodney Peete were injured and Garrett came in as the third-string quarterback and not only competed against the legendary Brett Favre, but also beat him in a completely improbable way, he threw for more yards than the "General" (311 against 247) and led Dallas to score 36 of their 42 points in the second half.

5.- 2013: Pittsburgh Steelers 20, Baltimore Ravens 22

The only game not involving either Lions or Cowboys and part of the third night game added in 2006, this was an exciting game in a great modern NFL rivalry, but what made it an absolute classic was when Pittsburgh head coach Mike Tomlin, got in the way on a Jacoby Jones kickoff return for a solo touchdown near the sidelines, the Steelers ended up losing the game for missing a two-point conversion and their coach a ridiculous $100,000 fine for unsportsmanlike conduct.

4.- 1974: Washington Redskins 23, Dallas Cowboys 24

The oldest of all these games and one that is iconic in the history of "America's Team", what for many is the greatest game in the history of the "NFL Classic" between the Cowboys and Redskins. Roger Staubach left the game with a concussion and his place was taken by rookie Clint Longley. The game was decided with less than 30 seconds to play when Longley threw an improbable bomb to Drew Pearson, who escaped 50 yards to the end zone.

3.- 1998: Minnesota Vikings 48, Dallas Cowboys 36

For true fans of this sport, it is impossible to forget how spectacular the 1998 Vikings offense was with a star player: wide receiver Randy Moss.

Moss had the high point of that fantastic rookie season in that game where he took revenge on the Cowboys, who did not want to pick him in that year's draft even though the world thought they would. Moss only had three receptions that day, all three for touchdowns and for a video game total of 163 yards. Add to that the fact that Troy Aikman threw for 455 yards that day (Thanksgiving record) despite the loss, and it was a memorable game.

2.- 1998: Pittsburgh Steelers 16, Detroit Lions 19 (OT)

Of the three games we put the Lions in overtime, this was the only one they won, but beyond that, what is absolutely insane about this game was the overtime kick, the Steelers captain Jerome Bettis said something confusing between heads or tails, the referee understood heads, but according to the referee he said tails and gave the ball to Detroit, who advanced and got the 44-yard field goal for the victory.

1.- 1993: Miami Dolphins 16, Dallas Cowboys 14

This game is an essential part of NFL history and can be summarized with two words: Leon Lett. Unusual was everything from the start at Texas Stadium, a torrential snowfall in a city not known for cold weather and even less in November, the Cowboys had the lead, but the Dolphins would try a field goal to win with 15 seconds to play, Pete Stoyanovich's 41-yard attempt was blocked, but out of nowhere, star defensive lineman Leon Lett inexplicably slid down the ball like a snow slide and fumbled it, Miami got the ball back and had another chance to win the game. This time Stoyanovich didn't miss from 18 yards out to win the game.

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