The tradition of Thanksgiving football is older than the NFL itself, with the first game (Young America Cricket Club vs. the Germantown Cricket Club) believed to have taken place in 1869. Since then, Americans have enjoyed decades of Thursday afternoon football and countless Detroit Lions losses (sorry, Lions fans -- the tradition of mocking your team's Thanksgiving performances is almost as old as the tradition of Thanksgiving football itself).
The good people at Statographics.com made an infographic to chart the rich history of Turkey Day football.
[Courtesy: Statographics.com]
