10 of the best Thanksgiving Day games in NFL history

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There have been some classics

Thanksgiving Day has provided us with some incredible NFL action over the years, and this season's slate has a chance to add to the league's long list of memorable matchups.

Here are 10 of the best Thanksgiving Day games in NFL history — games, not moments, so you'll just have to get your annual Butt Fumble fix elsewhere.

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1986: Green Bay Packers 44, Detroit Lions 40

Aaron Rodgers hasn't had a lot to smile about this season, but 30 years ago, the Packers gave their fans a very happy Thanksgiving by coming from 10 down in the fourth quarter to beat the Lions in the holiday's highest-scoring game in history.

Getty ImagesGrant Halverson

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1980: Chicago Bears 23, Detroit Lions 17 (OT)

This one makes the cut not only because the Bears overcame a 14-point fourth quarter deficit, but also because an NFL record was set.

On the first play of overtime, Chicago's Dave Williams returned the opening kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown, which (at the time) was the shortest regular season overtime session ever — the Bears needed just 16 seconds of the extra session to come away with the win.

NFLJames V. Biever

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2005: Denver Broncos 24, Dallas Cowboys 21 (OT)

Champ Bailey scored the game's first points by returning a pick from Drew Bledsoe 65 yards for a touchdown, and after Dallas countered with a TD pass to Keyshawn Johnson, the game was tight the rest of the way.

Best of all, this was a battle between an 8-2 Denver team and a 7-3 Dallas squad that required overtime to be decided.

Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY SportsMark J. Rebilas

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2012: Washington Redskins 38, Dallas Cowboys 31

RG3 threw three second-quarter touchdowns to put Washington up 28-3 at the half, before Tony Romo and the Cowboys came storming back to make it a game late.

Getty ImagesTom Pennington

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1998: Detroit Lions 19, Pittsburgh Steelers 16 (OT)

You remember this one. Jerome Bettis calls the overtime coin toss “tails” in the air, referee Phil Luckett announces that “the call is heads,” and chaos ensues.

Detroit ended up getting the ball and scoring on its first possession in the extra frame to steal a win over the Steelers.

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2013: Baltimore Ravens 22, Pittsburgh Steelers 20

This one went down to the wire, and Pittsburgh failed on a two-point conversion attempt that would have tied the game with just over a minute remaining.

But what's most memorable about this one is Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin maybe trying to trip Ravens returner Jacoby Jones as he ran past him on the sidelines.

Getty ImagesKevin C. Cox

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2012: Houston Texans 34, Detroit Lions 31 (OT)

A 4-6 Lions team gave the 9-1 Texans all they could handle before eventually succumbing in the overtime session.

The game was also a fantasy football player's dream. Houston's Andre Johnson finished with 188 yards receiving, while Detroit's Calvin Johnson ended up with 140 yards and a TD. Matthew Stafford threw for 441 yards and two scores, while Arian Foster and Justin Forsett combined to rush for more than 200 yards.

Rob Foldy/Getty Images

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1994: Dallas Cowboys 42, Green Bay Packers 31

Jason Garrett, now the head coach in Dallas, was a third-string quarterback pressed into action when both Troy Aikman and Rodney Peete were sidelined due to injury. And he managed to out-duel Brett Favre in this high-scoring classic.

Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY SportsMatthew Emmons

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1993: Miami Dolphins 16, Dallas Cowboys 14

The Cowboys had this.

Leading 14-13 in the game's closing seconds on a snow-covered field in Dallas, Jimmie Jones blocked a 41-yard field goal attempt on a play that should have sealed a victory for the Cowboys.

But Leon Lett ran in and touched the ball before the play was whistled dead, and the Dolphins recovered to give their kicker a second chance. This time, Pete Stoyanovich drilled the 19-yard attempt to send the Cowboys to a crushing and unnecessary loss.

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1974: Dallas Cowboys 24, Washington Redskins 23

This seems to be the one that experts agree is the best Thanksgiving Day game the NFL has produced, and with good reason.

Clint Longley, an untested rookie, was pressed into action once Roger Staubach was forced out of the game with a concussion — likely the result of the bounty that was placed on his head.

Longley stunned the Redskins with an incredible performance that culminated in a 50-yard touchdown pass to Drew Pearson with less than 30 seconds left, sending the Redskins to what many fans still believe is the worst loss in franchise history, even to this day.