Bills at Lions Thanksgiving Game to Feature John Madden Tribute

Madden is widely credited with raising the mystique around football on Thanksgiving, a phenomenon the Buffalo Bills will get to experience this year.

Forget turkey and stuffing ... Josh and John may become the next great Thanksgiving combination. 

The Buffalo Bills will be among the first teams to partake in the NFL's new Turkey Day aesthetics, as the league plans to use its fourth Thursday proceedings to honor the late broadcaster and coach John Madden. This year's slate of games, which will open with the Bills' visit to Thanksgiving staple Detroit, will be the first without Madden, who passed away in December at the age of 85. 

Madden was well-known for his extra pageantry on Thanksgiving, often awarding turkey legs to star players of the winning team when he called games alongside Pat Summerall on CBS and Fox. That tally did not include any Bills games, though Buffalo will make its third Thanksgiving appearance over the last four seasons, winning their showings against the other mainstay Dallas in 2019 and New Orleans last season. 

His broadcasting memory will be kept alive on his cherished holiday: the 25-yard-lines at Ford Field, AT&T Stadium, and Minnesota's U.S. Bank Stadium (where the Vikings host the New England Patriots in the nightcap) will bear Madden's image, as will the players' helmets. A "Madden Player of the Game" is poised to receive not only the traditional dinner but also a $10,000 scholarship in their name to be bestowed to the youth or high school program of the star's choosing. 

"No one cared more or contributed more to our game than John Madden," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement heralding the announcement. "Honoring his memory and impact on the NFL is important and Thanksgiving Day brings all of the elements significant to John to life - family, football, food, and fun."

Buffalo is 5-4-1 in 10 prior Thanksgiving appearances dating back to 1961. 

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Geoff Magliocchetti is on Twitter @GeoffJMags

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