Do teams score more on Thanksgiving? Sometimes it seems like they do. Or that they should. Most of the nation is watching, after all, so what better time to bust out that special gadget play? And defenses haven’t had the usual full week to prepare.
How else to explain the Raiders going into Dallas last year and piling up 36 points? Randy Moss had that weird game on Thanksgiving, where he kept catching long touchdowns. O.J. Simpson set the single-game rushing record in the ‘70s. And Troy Aikman, Kirk Cousins, Tony Romo and Matthew Stafford have all had games with over 440 yards.
Should fantasy leaguers be tending to start their Thanksgiving guys, figuring they’ll be a little better than usual?
The big-picture stats provide an emphatic “no”, and that’s logical. It is, after all, also Thanksgiving for the defensive players as well. They presumably would also be looking to play a little harder and run a little faster.
In the 32-team era, there have been 110 games played on Thanksgiving. 55 of those teams scored more points than their usual average in those games, but the other 55 scored fewer.
Overall, these 110 teams averaged 22.74 points in their games played on Thanksgiving. That’s just a few micro points lower than what they averaged in general (22.76)
Of the 110 teams, 22 scored a least a touchdown more than usual. I’ve got them in bold. But 27 scored at least a touchdown less.
We have much to be thankful for on this day, but we do not get extra stat production as a holiday bonus.
POINTS ON THANKSGIVING | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Team | Points | Avg | Difference |
2002 | Dallas Cowboys | 27 | 13.6 | 13.4 |
2002 | Washington | 20 | 19.2 | 0.8 |
2002 | New England Patriots | 20 | 23.8 | -3.8 |
2002 | • Detroit Lions | 12 | 19.1 | -7.1 |
2003 | Miami Dolphins | 40 | 19.4 | 20.6 |
2003 | Detroit Lions | 22 | 16.9 | 5.1 |
2003 | Dallas Cowboys | 21 | 18.1 | 2.9 |
2003 | • Green Bay Packers | 14 | 27.6 | -13.6 |
2004 | Indianapolis Colts | 41 | 32.6 | 8.4 |
2004 | Dallas Cowboys | 21 | 18.3 | 2.7 |
2004 | • Chicago Bears | 7 | 14.4 | -7.4 |
2004 | • Detroit Lions | 9 | 18.5 | -9.5 |
2005 | Atlanta Falcons | 27 | 21.9 | 5.1 |
2005 | Dallas Cowboys | 21 | 20.3 | 0.7 |
2005 | Denver Broncos | 24 | 24.7 | -0.7 |
2005 | • Detroit Lions | 7 | 15.9 | -8.9 |
2006 | Dallas Cowboys | 38 | 26.6 | 11.4 |
2006 | Miami Dolphins | 27 | 16.3 | 10.8 |
2006 | Kansas City | 19 | 20.7 | -1.7 |
2006 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 10 | 13.2 | -3.2 |
2006 | • Detroit Lions | 10 | 19.1 | -9.1 |
2006 | • Denver Broncos | 10 | 19.9 | -9.9 |
2007 | Green Bay Packers | 37 | 27.2 | 9.8 |
2007 | Dallas Cowboys | 34 | 28.4 | 5.6 |
2007 | Detroit Lions | 26 | 21.6 | 4.4 |
2007 | Indianapolis Colts | 31 | 28.1 | 2.9 |
2007 | Atlanta Falcons | 13 | 16.2 | -3.2 |
2007 | • New York Jets | 3 | 16.8 | -13.8 |
2008 | Tennessee Titans | 47 | 23.4 | 23.6 |
2008 | Philadelphia Eagles | 48 | 26.0 | 22.0 |
2008 | Dallas Cowboys | 34 | 22.6 | 11.4 |
2008 | Arizona Cardinals | 20 | 26.7 | -6.7 |
2008 | Detroit Lions | 10 | 16.8 | -6.8 |
2008 | • Seattle Seahawks | 9 | 18.4 | -9.4 |
2009 | Denver Broncos | 26 | 20.4 | 5.6 |
2009 | Green Bay Packers | 34 | 28.8 | 5.2 |
2009 | Dallas Cowboys | 24 | 22.6 | 1.4 |
2009 | Detroit Lions | 12 | 16.4 | -4.4 |
2009 | Oakland Raiders | 7 | 12.3 | -5.3 |
2009 | • New York Giants | 6 | 25.1 | -19.1 |
2010 | New England Patriots | 45 | 32.4 | 12.6 |
2010 | New Orleans Saints | 30 | 24.0 | 6.0 |
2010 | New York Jets | 26 | 22.9 | 3.1 |
2010 | Dallas Cowboys | 27 | 24.6 | 2.4 |
2010 | Detroit Lions | 24 | 22.6 | 1.4 |
2010 | • Cincinnati Bengals | 10 | 20.1 | -10.1 |
2011 | Miami Dolphins | 19 | 20.6 | -1.6 |
2011 | Dallas Cowboys | 20 | 23.1 | -3.1 |
2011 | • Baltimore Ravens | 16 | 23.6 | -7.6 |
2011 | • Green Bay Packers | 27 | 35.0 | -8.0 |
2011 | • Detroit Lions | 15 | 29.6 | -14.6 |
2011 | • San Francisco 49ers | 6 | 23.8 | -17.8 |
2012 | New England Patriots | 49 | 34.8 | 14.2 |
2012 | Washington | 38 | 27.3 | 10.8 |
2012 | Houston Texans | 34 | 26.0 | 8.0 |
2012 | Detroit Lions | 31 | 23.3 | 7.8 |
2012 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | 23.5 | 7.5 |
2012 | New York Jets | 19 | 17.6 | 1.4 |
2013 | Detroit Lions | 40 | 24.7 | 15.3 |
2013 | Oakland Raiders | 24 | 20.1 | 3.9 |
2013 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | 27.4 | 3.6 |
2013 | Baltimore Ravens | 22 | 20.0 | 2.0 |
2013 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 20 | 23.7 | -3.7 |
2013 | • Green Bay Packers | 10 | 26.1 | -16.1 |
2014 | Detroit Lions | 34 | 20.1 | 13.9 |
2014 | Philadelphia Eagles | 33 | 29.6 | 3.4 |
2014 | Chicago Bears | 17 | 19.9 | -2.9 |
2014 | Seattle Seahawks | 19 | 24.6 | -5.6 |
2014 | • San Francisco 49ers | 3 | 19.1 | -16.1 |
2014 | • Dallas Cowboys | 10 | 29.2 | -19.2 |
2015 | Detroit Lions | 45 | 22.4 | 22.6 |
2015 | Carolina Panthers | 33 | 31.3 | 1.8 |
2015 | Dallas Cowboys | 14 | 17.2 | -3.2 |
2015 | Chicago Bears | 17 | 20.9 | -3.9 |
2015 | • Philadelphia Eagles | 14 | 23.6 | -9.6 |
2015 | • Green Bay Packers | 13 | 23.0 | -10.0 |
2016 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | 26.3 | 4.7 |
2016 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 28 | 24.9 | 3.1 |
2016 | Washington | 26 | 24.8 | 1.3 |
2016 | Detroit Lions | 16 | 21.6 | -5.6 |
2016 | • Minnesota Vikings | 13 | 20.4 | -7.4 |
2016 | • Indianapolis Colts | 7 | 25.7 | -18.7 |
2017 | Minnesota Vikings | 30 | 23.9 | 6.1 |
2017 | Los Angeles Chargers | 28 | 22.2 | 5.8 |
2017 | Washington | 20 | 21.4 | -1.4 |
2017 | Detroit Lions | 23 | 25.6 | -2.6 |
2017 | New York Giants | 10 | 15.4 | -5.4 |
2017 | • Dallas Cowboys | 6 | 22.1 | -16.1 |
2018 | Dallas Cowboys | 31 | 21.2 | 9.8 |
2018 | Washington | 23 | 17.6 | 5.4 |
2018 | New Orleans Saints | 31 | 31.5 | -0.5 |
2018 | Chicago Bears | 23 | 26.3 | -3.3 |
2018 | Detroit Lions | 16 | 20.3 | -4.3 |
2018 | • Atlanta Falcons | 17 | 25.9 | -8.9 |
2019 | Chicago Bears | 24 | 17.5 | 6.5 |
2019 | Buffalo Bills | 26 | 19.6 | 6.4 |
2019 | Detroit Lions | 20 | 21.3 | -1.3 |
2019 | New Orleans Saints | 26 | 28.6 | -2.6 |
2019 | Atlanta Falcons | 18 | 23.8 | -5.8 |
2019 | • Dallas Cowboys | 15 | 27.1 | -12.1 |
2020 | Washington | 41 | 20.9 | 20.1 |
2020 | Houston Texans | 41 | 24.0 | 17.0 |
2020 | Detroit Lions | 25 | 23.6 | 1.4 |
2020 | • Dallas Cowboys | 16 | 24.7 | -8.7 |
2021 | Las Vegas Raiders | 36 | 22.0 | 14.0 |
2021 | Buffalo Bills | 31 | 28.4 | 2.6 |
2021 | Dallas Cowboys | 33 | 31.2 | 1.8 |
2021 | Chicago Bears | 16 | 18.3 | -2.3 |
2021 | Detroit Lions | 14 | 19.1 | -5.1 |
2021 | • New Orleans Saints | 6 | 21.4 | -15.4 |
—Ian Allan