It will never happen as long as each team hosts a Thanksgiving Day game at its home stadium. The two teams had a pre-Thanksgiving contest in 2010, four days before the holiday. The Cowboys defeated the Lions, 35-19, at Cowboys Stadium.
Although the Detroit Lions have played on Thanksgiving since the 1930s, their record for holiday games is 33-36-2. The Dallas Cowboys did not begin playing on Thanksgiving until 1966, but they are closing in on the Lions' win total. The Cowboys are 27-15-1 on Thanksgiving.
Technically speaking, it isn't true. There is a third Thanksgiving game played after the Cowboys' traditional afternoon game.
Through the 2017 season, the Dallas Cowboys are 30-19-1 in games played on Thanksgiving Day.
The two teams have never played on Thanksgiving because they traditionally host games on the holiday. In 2010, the Cowboys defeated the Lions at Cowboys Stadium, 35-19, on the Sunday before Thanksgiving.
The Cowboys have traditionally played their afternoon Thanksgiving Day game after the Detroit Lions' contest.
Through the 2016 season, the Dallas Cowboys have a 30-18-1 record in games played on Thanksgiving Day.
Through the 2017 season, the Dallas Cowboys are 30-19-1 in games played on Thanksgiving Day.
The Cowboys first played on Thanksgiving Day in 1966. Since then, the only seasons the Cowboys did not play on Thanksgiving were 1975 and 1977.
Yes. It has become a tradition for the Dallas Cowboys to play a late afternoon home game on Thanksgiving Day, just as the Detroit Lions have long played an early afternoon home game on the last Thursday in November. Dallas occasionally also gets a home game on the Sunday before Thanksgiving.
There isn't a contract as such. The National Football League has an understanding with the Detroit Lions and the Dallas Cowboys that they will host traditional Thanksgiving Day games each season. The Lions have played on Thanksgiving since 1933. The Cowboys have played an afternoon game on the holiday in all but two years since 1966. In recent years, the NFL has added a third Thanksgiving game, which is televised in prime time.
Through the 2014 season, the Dallas Cowboys are 29-17-1 in games played on Thanksgiving Day.
Through the 2014 season, the Dallas Cowboys have lost 17 of the 47 Thanksgiving Day games they have played since 1966. There was one tie.