Who plays on Thursday Night Football? Breaking down Week 13 Thanksgiving matchup

Posted by Admin November 28, 2024 Football

The “Thursday Night Football” schedule has delivered exciting matchups time and again in 2024. Thanksgiving’s final course is a tasty interconference clash between two teams vying for playoff positioning.

The Green Bay Packers (8-3) will battle the Miami Dolphins (5-6) in Week 13 at Lambeau Field to conclude the Thanksgiving NFL games. The prime-time showdown will be the first meeting between the two sides since the Packers won on Christmas Day in 2022.

The Packers are red-hot, winning six of their last seven, and are embedded in the NFC playoff picture. The Dolphins enter Week 13 off their third consecutive win as they attempt to climb into the AFC playoff picture. Miami has an opportunity on “Thursday Night Football” to upset Green Bay and open eyes around the league as a contender.

Here’s everything to know about the “Thursday Night Football” matchup for Week 13.

Who plays on Thursday Night Football tonight?

The Dolphins travel to Green Bay on Thursday night to take on the Packers.

How to watch Thursday Night Football

Live stream: Peacock
TV Channel: NBC

“Thursday Night Football” will exclusively stream on Peacock.

Watch “Thursday Night Football” with a Peacock subscription

Thursday Night Football preview

The Packers are 8-3 but remain behind the Detroit Lions (10-1) and Minnesota Vikings (9-2) in the NFC North standings entering this showdown on Thursday night. On Sunday, they defeated the San Francisco 49ers 38-10 to earn some revenge against the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last season. Green Bay’s win was a blowout, but the 49ers were shorthanded.

The Packers’ only loss since September was against the Lions, who have the best record in the league entering Thanksgiving week. According to FTN, the Packers rank sixth overall in team total DVOA compared to 13th overall in 2023.

NFL fans will get a treat for dessert after stuffing their faces earlier in the day while the Lions-Bears and Cowboys-Giants play. Two rising quarterbacks, Jordan Love and Tua Tagovailoa, will square off. Both signal-callers have dealt with injuries this season but come into Week 13’s prime-time matchup healthy. The Dolphins selected Tagovailoa with the fifth overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft while the Packers traded up to select Love with the 26th overall pick in that same draft.

Tagovailoa’s concussion in Week 2 was the third of his NFL career. His injury history since the start of his college career has been an issue, but when he has been healthy the Dolphins offense has been electrifying. He returned in Week 8 and has Miami charging up the AFC standings. They have scored 34 points in back-to-back weeks.

Meanwhile, Love suffered a sprained MCL in Week 1 and missed two games. Since returning to the lineup, Green Bay has a 6-1 record behind a healthy Love. Running back Josh Jacobs is coming off an outstanding three-touchdown performance and will be looking to carry his momentum into Thanksgiving.

Since drafting Tua in 2020, Miami has notoriously struggled in cold weather. The forecast calls for temperatures below 32 degrees at kickoff in Green Bay. According to Pro Football Talk, Tua is 0-7 in games with a temperature of 40 degrees or below at kickoff. The Dolphins and Tagovailoa will be eager to change the narrative on Thanksgiving night on the national stage.

This will be the second meeting between Packers head coach Matt LaFleur and Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel. The two offensive gurus worked together in Houston, Atlanta and Washington.

The Thanksgiving night clash will have a playoff atmosphere with a cold-weather battle on hand at Lambeau to begin the holiday season.

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