Thanksgiving NFL Games 2026: Matchups, Times and TV
All three Thanksgiving Day 2026 NFL games, with kickoff times in ET, GMT and IST, where to watch and stream, records as of Oct 26 and the history behind the tradition.
- Thursday, Nov 26, 2026: Bears at Lions (1:00 p.m. ET, CBS), Eagles at Cowboys (4:30 p.m. ET, FOX) and Chiefs at Bills (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC).
- In the UK the games start at 18:00, 21:30 and 01:20 GMT; in India at 11:30 p.m., 3:00 a.m. and 6:50 a.m. IST.
- Chiefs-Bills is the first Thanksgiving game ever played in Buffalo, and the week also adds a Wednesday game and a Black Friday game.
The three Thanksgiving Day NFL games are on Thursday, November 26, 2026. The Chicago Bears visit the Detroit Lions at 1:00 p.m. ET on CBS, the Philadelphia Eagles visit the Dallas Cowboys at 4:30 p.m. ET on FOX, and the Kansas City Chiefs visit the Buffalo Bills at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC. In the UK the kickoffs are 18:00 and 21:30 GMT on Thursday and 01:20 GMT on Friday. In India they are 11:30 p.m. IST on Thursday, then 3:00 a.m. and 6:50 a.m. IST on Friday.
The schedule below comes from NFL.com's Week 12 schedule and the teams' official sites. Records and storylines are as of October 26, 2026, and will change over the four weeks of games still to come before the holiday.
Thanksgiving 2026 NFL schedule at a glance
- Bears at Lions: 1:00 p.m. ET (18:00 GMT, 11:30 p.m. IST) at Ford Field, Detroit. TV: CBS. Streaming: Paramount+ and NFL+.
- Eagles at Cowboys: 4:30 p.m. ET (21:30 GMT; 3:00 a.m. IST Friday) at AT&T Stadium, Arlington, Texas. TV: FOX, with FOX Deportes in Spanish. Streaming: FOX One and NFL+.
- Chiefs at Bills: 8:20 p.m. ET (01:20 GMT and 6:50 a.m. IST, both Friday) at Highmark Stadium, Orchard Park, New York. TV: NBC, with Spanish coverage on Telemundo and Universo. Streaming: Peacock and NFL+.
Kickoff times and networks match on the Lions, Bears, Cowboys, Eagles, Chiefs and Bills schedule pages. The Central-time teams list the same games at 12:00, 3:30 and 7:20 p.m. CT. Streaming options come from NFL.com's Thanksgiving week preview, and Spanish-language coverage of the night game from NBC Sports and the Bills. US clocks fall back on November 1, so all ET times are Eastern Standard Time. For the holiday itself, see our Thanksgiving 2026 guide to what is open.
Bears at Lions: a division race with 1934 echoes
Chicago (5-2) and Detroit (4-2) are both chasing the unbeaten Minnesota Vikings (6-0) in the NFC North, according to NFL.com's standings. The Bears have won two straight, most recently beating New England 30-24 on October 22. The Lions came out of their bye with a 20-17 win over Green Bay on October 25.
The roles have flipped since 2025. Chicago won the division at 11-6 last season, while Detroit finished 9-8 and missed the playoffs, CBS Sports noted when the schedule came out. Sports Illustrated points out that this is Ben Johnson's second trip back to Detroit as the Bears' head coach. Johnson lost both games against the Lions last season but still won the division.
The matchup also has deep roots. The Bears beat the Lions 19-16 at the University of Detroit Stadium on November 29, 1934, in Detroit's first Thanksgiving home game, per ESPN. NFL.com says the Bears lead the Thanksgiving series 11-9, and Detroit's 2024 holiday win over Chicago was its first Thanksgiving victory since 2016.
Eagles at Cowboys: a rematch one month later
This is the unusual one. Philadelphia and Dallas are both 2-4, and they meet on Monday Night Football tonight, October 26, in Philadelphia. That means they will already have played each other once by Thanksgiving. The Eagles have lost four straight after a 2-0 start, and the Cowboys have lost two in a row, according to the teams' schedule pages.
Holiday history favours Philadelphia. The Eagles are 6-1 on Thanksgiving and 2-0 against Dallas, per Sports Illustrated, after wins of 27-0 in 1989 and 33-10 in 2014, according to NFL.com. Dallas, though, has won four straight Thanksgiving games, CBS Sports noted, including last year's 31-28 win over Kansas City. The Cowboys are 35-22-1 all-time on the holiday.
Dallas went 7-9-1 in 2025, and its off-season changes included a new defensive coordinator, Christian Parker, and first-round pick Caleb Downs, according to CBS Sports. Philadelphia won the NFC East in 2025 but lost in the wild-card round.
Chiefs at Bills: Mahomes vs. Allen, and a first for Buffalo
The night game pairs two 5-1 division leaders. Kansas City lost for the first time this season on October 25, falling 20-3 in Seattle (see our Chiefs vs. Seahawks recap). Buffalo's only loss was 29-26 to New England in Week 4, and the Bills were on a bye this past weekend.
It will be the first Thanksgiving game ever played in Buffalo, according to NBC Sports, and the Bills' first home game on the holiday, per the Bills' schedule announcement. Highmark Stadium is new this season. The Bills are 6-4-1 on Thanksgiving and 3-0 in the Josh Allen era, while the Chiefs are 5-6, according to Sports Illustrated.
NBC calls it the "Rivalry of the Decade." The teams have met 10 times since 2020, each winning five, and six of those games were decided by one score, per NBC Sports. CBS Sports notes that Allen is 5-1 against Patrick Mahomes in the regular season, while Mahomes is 4-0 against Allen in the playoffs. Mahomes is back after tearing his ACL in December 2025, and Kansas City signed Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III. Buffalo replaced Sean McDermott with Joe Brady as head coach.
Thanksgiving week: five games in three days
For the first time, the NFL has games across the whole holiday week. ESPN's schedule-release report confirmed the three Thursday games in May, and NFL.com lists two more. The Green Bay Packers visit the Los Angeles Rams on Wednesday, November 25, at 8 p.m. ET on Netflix, the league's first Thanksgiving Eve game. On Black Friday, November 27, the Denver Broncos visit the Pittsburgh Steelers at 3 p.m. ET on Prime Video. If your weekend mixes football and shopping, our Black Friday 2026 guide covers the sales.
How to watch from the UK and India
In the UK, NFL.com's 2026 viewing guide lists Thanksgiving Day among Sky Sports' NFL coverage. NFL Game Pass on DAZN streams every game live in more than 200 markets, though the NFL says some blackout restrictions apply in the UK and Ireland. The NFL's Game Pass page does not mention India by name, so viewers there should confirm availability with DAZN before the day.
- Bears at Lions: 18:00 GMT Thursday; 11:30 p.m. IST Thursday
- Eagles at Cowboys: 21:30 GMT Thursday; 3:00 a.m. IST Friday
- Chiefs at Bills: 01:20 GMT Friday; 6:50 a.m. IST Friday
A short history of NFL football on Thanksgiving
Football on Thanksgiving is older than the NFL. HISTORY traces it to at least 1876, when Yale beat Princeton. It also notes that six pro games were played on Thanksgiving in 1920. The Chicago Bears and Chicago Cardinals then met every Thanksgiving from 1922 to 1933.
The modern tradition began in 1934. Lions owner George A. Richards had just moved the Portsmouth Spartans to Detroit, and he booked the Bears for Thanksgiving morning to win over local fans. He also got NBC Radio to carry the game nationally. Detroit has hosted every year since, apart from 1939 to 1944 during World War II.
Dallas joined in 1966 with a 26-14 win over Cleveland at the Cotton Bowl in front of 80,259 fans. The St. Louis Cardinals hosted instead in 1975 and 1977, per ESPN. A third, prime-time game with no fixed host was added in 2006. The Lions go into this year 38-46-2 on Thanksgiving, according to Sports Illustrated and NFL.com.
Thanksgiving viewership keeps setting records
Last year's Chiefs-Cowboys game averaged 57.23 million viewers on CBS, the most-watched regular-season game in NFL history, according to the Associated Press via ESPN. Packers-Lions drew 47.7 million earlier that day. The three games averaged 44.7 million, making it the fourth straight year of a holiday record.
Sports Media Watch cautions that part of the jump reflects Nielsen's wider measurement of out-of-home and big-data viewing, so comparisons with earlier years are not like for like.
What to watch for
- Tonight's Cowboys-Eagles result. Barring a tie, one team will be 3-4 and the other 2-5 going into the Thanksgiving rematch.
- The NFC North race. Detroit hosts Minnesota on November 1 and plays four more games before the holiday, including a November 15 game in Munich. Chicago visits Seattle on November 2.
- Chiefs and Bills form. Kansas City visits Denver on November 1 with the AFC West lead at stake, and Buffalo hosts Baltimore the same day.
- Schedule notes. The Bears and Cowboys sites say some dates and times can change under flexible scheduling, so check kickoff times again in Thanksgiving week.
Frequently asked questions
What time are the Thanksgiving NFL games in 2026?
On Thursday, November 26, 2026, Bears at Lions kicks off at 1:00 p.m. ET, Eagles at Cowboys at 4:30 p.m. ET and Chiefs at Bills at 8:20 p.m. ET. That is 18:00, 21:30 and 01:20 GMT (the last on Friday), and 11:30 p.m. IST Thursday, then 3:00 a.m. and 6:50 a.m. IST Friday.
What channel are the Thanksgiving NFL games on?
Bears at Lions is on CBS and streams on Paramount+. Eagles at Cowboys is on FOX and streams on FOX One. Chiefs at Bills is on NBC and streams on Peacock, with Spanish coverage on Telemundo and Universo. NFL.com says all three are also on NFL+.
Why do the Lions and Cowboys always play on Thanksgiving?
Detroit has hosted a Thanksgiving game every year since 1934, except during World War II (1939 to 1944), after owner George A. Richards scheduled the Bears to build interest in his new team. Dallas began hosting in 1966, and has hosted every year since apart from 1975 and 1977, when the St. Louis Cardinals hosted instead.
Can I watch the Thanksgiving NFL games in the UK or India?
In the UK, Sky Sports includes Thanksgiving Day in its 2026 NFL coverage, and NFL Game Pass on DAZN streams every game, with some blackout restrictions in the UK and Ireland. The NFL says Game Pass on DAZN is sold in more than 200 markets but does not name India, so check DAZN's site for availability.
Is there an NFL game on Black Friday 2026?
Yes. The Denver Broncos visit the Pittsburgh Steelers on Friday, November 27, 2026, at 3 p.m. ET on Prime Video. There is also a Thanksgiving Eve game on Wednesday, November 25, when the Packers visit the Rams at 8 p.m. ET on Netflix.
Sources
- 2026 NFL Schedule: Week 12, NFL
- 2026 NFL schedule release: Packers-Rams, Chiefs-Bills, Broncos-Steelers highlight Thanksgiving Week, NFL
- 2026 NFL Standings, NFL
- Where to watch the NFL in the UK and Ireland in 2026, NFL
- What is NFL Game Pass on DAZN?, NFL
- Detroit Lions 2026 Schedule, Detroit Lions
- Chicago Bears 2026 Schedule, Chicago Bears
- Dallas Cowboys 2026 Schedule, Dallas Cowboys
- Philadelphia Eagles 2026 Schedule, Philadelphia Eagles
- Kansas City Chiefs 2026 Schedule, Kansas City Chiefs
- Bills 2026 Schedule, Buffalo Bills
- Holiday Spotlight! Bills slated for Thanksgiving and Christmas matchups, Buffalo Bills
- Sunday Night Football on NBC and Peacock unveils 2026 schedule, NBC Sports
- NFL 2026 schedule: Thanksgiving week expands again, five games headline holiday slate, CBS Sports
- NFL Thanksgiving Schedule 2026: Teams, Kickoff Times & How to Watch, Sports Illustrated
- Full 2026 NFL schedule unveiled; Patriots-Seahawks in Week 1, ESPN
- Welcome to Thanksgiving in the NFL: What to know about the history, records and 2025 schedule, ESPN
- Chiefs-Cowboys Thanksgiving game sets NFL viewership record, ESPN (Associated Press)
- How the NFL Popularized Thanksgiving Day Football, HISTORY
- NFL Thanksgiving games set expected records, with over 57M for Chiefs-Cowboys, Sports Media Watch
How we wrote this
GessyMorgan explainers are built from public reporting and official sources. This post draws on the 20 sources listed above, each linked where we use it. It was drafted with AI assistance and checked against those sources before publishing. We did not test products, attend events or interview anyone for this article. Facts are current as of October 26, 2026, and we update the post when they change.
