Top 5 NFL Thanksgiving games of all time

1993 - Lett It Be, Leon

Leon Lett was an integral part of the Dallas Cowboys' historic endeavors in the 1990s, winning three Super Bowls and reaching two Pro Bowls. Alas, Lett's career is mostly remembered for two blunders on the highest of NFL stages: less than a year after showboating denied him a touchdown in the Super Bowl, Lett's botched attempt to recover a blocked Miami Dolphins kick doomed Dallas to a snowy 16-14 defeat after Pete Stoyanovich converted the afforded rekick. The error erased a memorable showing from Cowboys receiver Kevin Williams, who earned both of their scores (taking a punt back 64 yards for the latter).

Ironically, the game shifted fortunes for both participants: Miami dropped each of their next five contests to miss the 1993-94 playoffs entirely, while the Cowboys didn't lose a game after that en route to their second consecutive Lombardi Trophy hoist.

1998 - Don't Lose Your Heads

Years of gridiron misfortune has convinced Lions fans that NFL officials have it out for them. Thanksgiving has offered little reprieve from the phenomenon (remember Justin Forsett's "touchdown"?) but referee Phil Luckett was looking out for Detroit during a 1998 showdown against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

With the game forced to overtime, Luckett oversaw the traditional call-it-in-the-air coin toss, offering a head-or-tail choice to Steelers captain Jerome Bettis. Though Bettis appeared to audibly call "tails" for the eventual winner, Luckett insisted that "heads" was his call, sending the rusher into a frenzy. Luckett claimed, as on-field microphones would confirm, that Bettis' original call was heads before switching to tails mid-sentence. Detroit's Jason Hanson would boot a 42-yard field goal to give the Lions a 19-16 victory.

The call left a profound effect on the NFL's normally mundane coin toss procedures: the call in the air was abolished, with referees now requesting the visiting captain's choice prior to the flip.