Colin Healy ‘25

Sports Editor

In the latest rendition of the NFL on Thanksgiving, the three game slate saw the Bills, Cowboys, and Vikings all come away victorious. On the flip side, the Thanksgiving day mainstay Lions, Giants, and Patriots all came up short in their respective contests. The margin of victory was one possession in each game, signaling another classic slate of games on Turkey Day. 

     As is custom, the first game of the day kicked off in Detroit, where the hometown Lions played the Bills. What was unusual about this game is that this was the Bills’ second straight game in Detroit and at Ford Field. Due to snow storms in Buffalo the previous week, the Bills were forced to play indoors in Detroit against the Cleveland Browns. Buffalo played as the home team. Instead of flying back to Buffalo after that game, the Bills hung around Detroit for a few more days because their next game happened to be this one on Thanksgiving. 

     The Bills came out of their “home” and away series in Detroit undefeated, once as the home team and once as the away team at Ford Field. After the Lions tied the game with under 30 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Josh Allen marched down the field in just enough time to set up a game winning field goal with two seconds remaining. The Bills began the drive with all three of their timeouts and ended up using all of them, but 23 seconds still does not give you a ton of time to move the ball. Josh Allen did it with time to spare.

     In the mid-afternoon game, which is always occupied by Dallas, the Cowboys hosted the Giants in an NFC East showdown. A back and forth first half resulted in the Giants holding a 13-7 lead at halftime, after Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott threw two interceptions in the first two quarters. 

     Determined to defend Dallas, the Cowboys scored three straight touchdowns in the second half and took the lead for good. A late score by the Giants set up an onside kick, but Dallas recovered. The Cowboys, who moved to 8-3 with the victory, now sit comfortably in a playoff spot. Despite not holding the NFC East lead, which belongs to the NFL-leading Philadelphia Eagles, the Cowboys should be a factor come the postseason.

     To round out the schedule, my Patriots played, and lost to, the Vikings. As a fan, this was a tough game to watch. The Patriot offense finally showed up to play only for the defense to play arguably their worst game of the season. Unfortunately, New England’s offense is not built to last in shootout games, and so they lost 33-26.

     Mac Jones looked the sharpest he has all season. He completed deep balls all game and threw for two touchdowns. It’s a shame that the defense forgot to get off the plane. Kirk Cousins marched Minnesota down the field on almost every possession, coming away with points when they needed to. New England just could not get a stop when it mattered. The one time they did it was nullified by a special teams penalty that gave the ball right back to the Vikings. There’s no chance for a team like New England if they can’t stop such a potent offense.

     So there you have it. Thanksgiving Day 2022 is in the books. I’d have been all the more satisfied had the Patriots come away with that win, but the beat goes on. It was still a fun day of football. It’s time now for the final stretch where hearts are broken and playoff dreams are crushed. 

     As one of the dreamers, I hope my team can pull it off. We’re on to Buffalo. As for the rest, good luck to you all!