John Madden made a major impact in the NFL and is arguably the face of football on Thanksgiving Day. This has led to the league announcing a new tradition called “John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration,” a year multi-faced celebration of the late coach and broadcaster’s legacy.
The inaugural “John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration” will be on Thursday, Nov. 24 and will feature tributes from CBS, Fox and NBC and will be featured in each game (Bills vs. Lions at 12:30 PM ET on CBS, Giants vs. Cowboys at 4:30 PM ET on FOX and Patriots vs. Vikings at 8:20 PM ET on NBC). Additionally, a recording of Madden will be the lead-in for all three games.
Videos by PopCulture.com
“No one cared more or contributed more to our game than John Madden,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “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.”
The “John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration” will also feature a special logo at the 25-yard lines of each field, a special completion from EA Sports called “Game Before The Game” which will pit two opposing players from Thanksgiving Day competing teams and a special Madden tribute mural in the Metaverse by Gabe Gault, the son of former NFL wide receiver Willie Gault. Madden, who died in December 2021, called 20 Thanksgiving Day NFL games in his career.
“There’s no place that I would rather be today on Thanksgiving than right here, right now, at a football game. There are just certain things that go together; the Turkey, the Family, the Tradition, Football…And we have it all today,” Madden said. Madden began his NFL coaching career in 1967 when he became the linebackers coach for the Oakland Raiders (now Las Vegas Raiders). He was promoted to head coach in 1968 and held that position until the end of the 1978 season. In his 10 seasons as the Raiders’ head coach, Madden won 103 games, seven division titles and the Super Bowl title during the 1976 season.
Following his coaching career, Madden became a broadcaster and called games for CBS, ABC, NBC and Fox. Madden won 16 Sports Emmy Awards in his career and his skills in the booth led to EA Sports featuring him in the Madden NFL video game series which continues today.
