Top NFL Thanksgiving performances: Brady, Manning, Moss

There was a time – not that long ago, actually – when it was a special occasion for the NFL to play on Thursdays. It only happened on Thanksgiving, usually with games in Detroit and Dallas, and over time the event provided some of the greatest individual performances in NFL history.

As we prepare for the 2023 release, let’s take a closer look at 12 of them. The search was facilitated by the Pro Football Reference database and (primarily) limited to games played after the 1970 NFL/AFL merger.

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Playing for the Cleveland Rams, Benton became the first professional football player to eclipse 300 receiving yards in a 28-21 victory over the Lions. He caught 10 passes from Hall of Fame quarterback Bob Waterfield, including a 70-yard touchdown, and for good measure, he had an interception while playing defense. The yardage record stood for 40 years and remains one of only six 300-yard receiving games in NFL history, a notable feat considering how the game has evolved in the modern era.

1976: 273 yards for OJ Simpson

In his seventh season with the Buffalo Bills, and three years removed from his 2,003-yard season, Simpson broke his own NFL record for rushing yards in a game. His longest carry was a 48-yard touchdown run in the third quarter of the Bills’ 27-14 loss to the Detroit Lions. The NFL record stood for one year, until Walter Payton of the Chicago Bears ran for 275 yards in a game against the Vikings, and it now sits at 6th on the all-time list.

1977: Bob Griese throws six touchdown passes

Griese tied a then-NFL record for scoring throws, including three to Nat Moore, during the Miami Dolphins’ 55-14 demolition of the St. Louis Cardinals. The match took place at Busch Stadium in Saint-Louis in a temperature of 39 degrees which would not have predicted such a result. Griese made a total of 151 regular season starts during his Hall of Fame career. This game was one of four in which he threw more than three touchdown passes.

1979: Earl Campbell rumbles for 195 yards

Campbell was in his second season with the Houston Oilers when he made his only appearance on Thanksgiving, and it was a memorable one. Even after posting 264 carries in the Oilers’ first 12 games, Campbell rushed 33 times for 195 yards, second only to Simpson’s 273 yards on Thanksgiving and two touchdowns in a 30-24 win over the Cowboys. One of the scores came on a 61-yard run. This game was one of 20 in which Campbell had at least 30 carries.

1994: Dave Krieg’s perfect passer rating

After replacing injured Lions starter Scott Mitchell earlier in the season, Krieg completed 20 of 25 passes for 351 yards and three touchdowns, with no interceptions, in a 35-21 victory over the Bills. Based on the perfect 158.3 passer rating, it was at least the best game of his career. (There have been 80 perfect passer ratings in NFL history with a minimum of 10 attempts.) Krieg, 36 at the time, led the Lions to a 5-2 record and a berth in NFC playoffs. He would go on to play for three more teams as a substitute before retiring after the 1998 season.

1998: Randy Moss scores three (long) touchdowns

As he continued his rookie season, Moss caught touchdown passes of 51, 56, and 56 yards in the Minnesota Vikings’ 46–36 victory over the Cowboys. Those were his only catches of the match. This performance was one of six occasions in post-merger history where a player accumulated at least 160 yards on three or fewer catches. No player has ever caught more than three touchdown passes on Thanksgiving, and Moss’ 163 receiving yards rank ninth among all Turkey Day performances.

1998: Troy Aikman throws for 455 yards to follow

Down 21-6 to the Vikings thanks in large part to Moss, the Cowboys were in catch-up mode for most of this game. This led to Aikman setting a Thanksgiving record and setting a career high for passing yards. It was the only 400-yard game of his Hall of Fame career, and it was a personal best in attempts (57) and completions (34). However, he only managed one touchdown pass and the Cowboys never got closer than 10 points after a 21-6 deficit.

2004: Peyton Manning faces Griese

Manning also threw six touchdown passes in a Thanksgiving game, that one being a 41-9 Indianapolis Colts victory over the Lions. The scores accounted for more than a quarter of his 23 completed passes and were one of nine games in which he threw at least five touchdown passes. He shares the current NFL record for scoring passes in a game (seven) with Nick Foles and Drew Brees, and ranks third in career touchdown passes (539), behind Tom Brady (649) and Brees (571). ).

2010: Tom Brady faces Krieg

Brady completed 21 of 27 passes for 341 yards and four touchdowns in the New England Patriots’ 45-24 rout of the Lions. The Patriots actually trailed 24-17 midway through the third quarter before Brady threw three touchdown passes — 79 and 22 yards to Deion Branch and 16 yards to Wes Welker — in a span of 13 minutes, 30 seconds. . This is one of three games in which Brady had a perfect passer rating.

2015: Ziggy Ansah has 3.5 sacks

Ansah was a singular terror to Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Mark Sanchez in the Lions’ 45-14 victory. He also exacted some revenge in the draft, doing most of his damage against offensive tackle Lane Johnson — whom the Eagles drafted one spot above him in 2013. (Johnson, who remains one of the best tackles NFL rights, got the last laugh from Ansah, who last appeared in an NFL game in 2020.)

2018: Amari Cooper scores on a 90-yard touchdown run

In his fourth game with the Dallas Cowboys after acquiring him from the Oakland Raiders, Cooper lined up with the offense at their own 10-yard line. Quarterback Dak Prescott yanked him over the middle and Cooper caught the ball at the 31-yard line. He broke away from three Washington defenders and sprinted the remaining 69 yards to score. According to ESPN Stats & Information, Cooper reached a top speed of 20.82 miles per hour, then the fastest of any Cowboys receiver since NFL Next Gen Stats began tracking this data.

Jordan had a career game against the division rival New Orleans Saints, getting all four sacks against Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan. This performance allowed him to reach a career-high 15.5 sacks this season. Three seasons later, when he broke the Saints record for career sacks last season, Jordan humorously thanked Ryan, whom he had sacked a total of 23 times during his career.

“A lot of Matt Ryan,” Jordan said of how he set the record. “He was good to me. Happy New Year, Matt Ryan, if you see him.”