NFL Thanksgiving Day all-time best players by the numbers Emmitt Smith Barry Sanders lead impressive

The NFL has a longstanding tradition of Thanksgiving Day football, folklore that has been played on the holiday every year since 1945 (the tradition actually started in 1920, but was halted from 1941 to 1944 due to World War II). The and the have hosted a Thanksgiving Day game for over 40 seasons, with the Lions hosting a Thanksgiving Day game every year since 1945 and the Cowboys since 1978. Detroit actually started hosting Thanksgiving Day games in Paul O'Neill Jersey 1934, but paused the tradition from 1939 to 1945 due to World War II. The Cowboys started in 1966.Since the Lions and the Cowboys have hosted games on the Thanksgiving slate every year since 1978, it's no surprise their players own the all-time records on Thanksgiving in several categories. The NFL added a Thanksgiving night game in 2006, and have typically pinned the holiday's marquee matchup in the prime-time slot, so some standout performances have emerged from the nightcap.With this in mind, we give thanks to the league's all-time leaders on Thanksgiving. (Lions) -- 3,000 (Cowboys) -- 2,338Troy Aikman (Cowboys) -- 2,174Tony Romo (Cowboys) -- 18Matthew Stafford (Lions) -- 18Bobby Layne (Lions) -- 14Danny White (Cowboys) -- 14Emmitt Smith (Cowboys) -- 1,178Barry Sanders (Lions) -- 931Tony Dorsett (Cowboys) -- 723Ezekiel Elliott (Cowboys) -- 438Walter Payton () -- 423Emmitt Smith (Cowboys) -- 13Tony Dorsett (Cowboys) -- 9Barry Sanders (Lions) -- 8 (Lions) -- 5Ezekiel Elliott (Cowboys) -- 5 (Cowboys) -- 903Herman Moore (Lions) -- 834 (Lions) -- 769Michael Irvin (Cowboys) -- 722Calvin Johnson (Lions) --11Cloyce Box (Lions) -- Randy Johnson Jersey 7Michael Irvin (Cowboys) -- 6Not surprising to see Cowboys and Lions players dominate this list -- since both teams play on the holiday every year -- even though it's a good look back at the players who have played a lot of games on Thanksgiving. Tony Romo has had plenty of standout performances on Thanksgiving, having three games with three-plus touchdown pa ses on the holiday. Romo has to sed 18 touchdown pa ses to 11 interceptions in 10 Thanksgiving starts.Barry Sanders has four 130-plus yard performances on Thanksgiving, saving his best games for the holiday. Even though Sanders averaged 4.47 yards per carry on Thanksgiving, the Lions went 7-3 in his 10 games played. Smith has eight 100-plus yard rushing performances on Thanksgiving in 12 games, the most notable when he ran for 144 yards on 23 carries in his final Thanksgiving Day game for the Cowboys in 2002 -- at the age of 33. Johnson had just one game on Thanksgiving where he didn't have a receiving touchdown -- in nine starts. Moore has three 125-plus yard receiving games on the holiday, the most notable being the seven catch, 169-yard performance against the in 1994.Let's take a quick look at the top single-game performances on Thanksgiving. Pick Six Newsletter Crafted By The Best NFL Mickey Mantle Jersey Experts Get the day's big stories + fun stuff you love like mock drafts, picks and power rankings. I agree to receive the "Pick Six Newsletter" and marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers), and other information from CBS Sports and the Paramount family of companies. By pre sing sign up, I confirm that I have read and agree to the and acknowledge Paramount's . Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe. Thanks for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error proce sing your subscription. Troy Aikman (Cowboys, 1998) -- 455 (Washington, 2016) -- 449Tony Romo (Cowboys, 2012) -- 441Matthew Stafford (Lions, 2012) -- 441 (, 2017) -- 434 (, 2004) -- 6Bob Griese (, 1977) -- 6Matthew Stafford (Lions, 2015) -- 5Tony Romo (Cowboys, 2006) -- 5O.J. Aaron Judge Jersey Simpson (Bills, 1976) -- 273Bob Hoernschemeyer (Lions, 1950) -- 198Earl Campbell (Oilers, 1979) -- 195Walter Payton (Bears, 1981) -- 179Barry Sanders (Lions, 1997) -- 167 (, 2012) -- 188Lance Alworth (Chargers, 1964) -- 185Anthony Carter (, 1987) -- 184 (Cowboys, 2018) -- 180Don Maynard (New York , 1960) -- 179A few other nuggets from standout Thanksgiving Day performances: Sterling Sharpe has the most receiving touchdowns on Thanksgiving with four, which he accomplished for the in 1994. has the most sacks on Thanksgiving with four, reached in 2018 when the faced the .No player has ever recorded three interceptions on Thanksgiving.Five players have rushed for three touchdowns on Thanksgiving: Jim Braxton (), (Cowboys), Ed Podolak (), Barry Sanders (Lions), and Emmitt Smith (Cowboys) -- Smith accomplished the feat twice (1996 and 1998). () and Dave Krieg (Lions) are the only two starting quarterbacks with a perfect pa ser rating of 158.3 on Thanksgiving (minimum 20 attempts). Krieg did it in 1994 and Brady in 2010.Simpson's 273 rushing yards were an NFL record at the time. He also ran for two scores in a lo s to the Lions in 1976.Randy Mo s (21 years, 286 days) is the youngest player to catch a touchdown on Thanksgiving (1998). Donald Driver (34 years, 297 days), is the oldest. (21 years, 125 days) is the youngest player Wade Boggs Jersey to run for a touchdown on Thanksgiving (2016) while (36 years, 247 days) is the oldest (1996). (39 years, 311 days) is the oldest player to throw a touchdown pa s on Thanksgiving (2018) while (22 years, 284 days) is the youngest (2012).The NFL has plenty of tradition on Thanksgiving, along with more records made to be broken over the coming years (some maybe in 2023).