NFL Thanksgiving Recap: Lions, Cowboys, Steelers All Win

In three highly-anticipated Thanksgiving matchups, the Detroit Lions defeated the Minnesota Vikings, the Dallas Cowboys beat their NFC East rivals, the Washington Redskins, and the Pittsburgh Steelers routed the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday.

Lions Edge Vikings Late, 16-13

Matthew Stafford led another key drive late in the fourth quarter, and Matt Prater’s kicking helped lead Detroit to a tight, 16-13 home victory over Minnesota.

For the second time this month, the Lions edged the Vikings, although this time, it wasn’t during overtime.

Prater’s 40-yard field goal on the final play secured the win for Detroit, moving the Lions one game ahead of Minnesota atop the NFC North. Darius Slay intercepted Sam Bradford’s pass with 30 seconds remaining to set up the winning kick.

On Nov. 6 in Minneapolis, Stafford led Detroit into range for Prater’s 58-yard field goal at the end of regulation, and the Lions (7-4) went on to win 22-16 in overtime.

”Obviously, we’re in decent position, but they don’t hand out trophies and things of that nature after a few wins like we’ve had,” Detroit coach Jim Caldwell said. ”But we’re happy that we were able to find a way to pull them out, that’s for sure.”

The Vikings (6-5) were facing third down in the last minute when Slay stepped up in coverage and intercepted Bradford. There was some initial doubt about whether Slay fumbled the ball at the end of the play, but the call was upheld. The Lions ran down the clock, and Prater’s kick ended it.

The Lions have won six of their last seven, while the Vikings have dropped five of six since starting the season 5-0.

”You just keep moving forward. Obviously, there’s a lot of football left to play and there’s still five games left,” Bradford said. ”All we can do is worry about who we have next week and that’s Dallas. Obviously, it’s a really big game for us.”

The Lions will next visit New Orleans on Sunday, Dec. 4. The Vikings will host the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday.

Cowboys Beat Redskins 31-26, Dez Bryant And Josh Norman Spar After Game

The Cowboys defeated the Redskins 31-26 on Thursday, and Dallas receiver Dez Bryant and Washington cornerback Josh Norman had to be separated by teammates after getting into a scuffle on the field following the game at AT&T Stadium.

Speaking with reporters after the game, neither player backed down.

Bryant caught three of his five passes while being defended by Norman, and began his post-game press conference by saying: “First off, Washington needs to get their money back from Josh Norman.”

The tense rivalry between the two players dates to last Thanksgiving, when Norman was with the Carolina Panthers. Bryant was limited to two catches for 26 yards in the Cowboys’ 33-14 loss, and after the game Norman said the Cowboys should “get Dez’s $70 million back,” referencing the five-year, $70 million deal Bryant signed in the summer of 2015.

Norman signed a five-year, $75 million deal with the Redskins this past summer.

“I didn’t make it personal,” Bryant said. “He made it personal. I was just going to come out and do my job, and that’s exactly what I did. He wanted to bump. I let him bump. He got me bumping a little bit, and he made me attack him even more. You know, I honestly feel like the guy is extremely soft. I think he’s just a bunch of talk. If he was out and about, I wouldn’t dare on my life let him talk to me like that. Those words would never came out his mouth. Promise. Promise it wouldn’t. But on another, we got after that ass. Hell of a win. You know, it feels good.”

The Bryant-Norman matchup became the most physical in the fourth quarter, after Bryant made a 13-yard catch to the Washington 6 that set up Dak Prescott’s touchdown run. Norman grabbed Bryant’s leg, preventing him from getting up after the play, resulting in a brief scuffle between both teams.

Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott, both rookies, led the charge for Dallas’ offense. The Cowboys (10-1) continue to lead the NFC East, while the Redskins (6-4-1) are third, behind the New York Giants (7-3).

The Redskins will next visit the Arizona Cardinals on Dec. 4.

Antonio Brown, Steelers Roll Past Helpless Colts 28-7

Antonio Brown caught three touchdown passes from Ben Roethlisberger, and the Pittsburgh Steelers (6-5) routed the banged-up Colts 28-7 in Indianapolis in Thursday night’s Thanksgiving finale.

Indianapolis quarterback Scott Tolzien, who replaced the injured Andrew Luck, finished 22-of-36 for 205 yards, one touchdown and two picks. The Colts (5-6) also lost center Ryan Kelly early on, as well as guard Denzelle Good, corner Vontae Davis and top receiver T.Y. Hilton, who dropped a perfectly-thrown pass from Tolzien a few minutes before sustaining a back injury.

Perhaps the only silver lining of the Cam Heyward injury in Pittsburgh was the forced maturity of rookie nose tackle Javon Hargrave. The Steelers are depending on three rookies — Hargrave, Sean Davis and Artie Burns — heavily on defense and Thursday’s game was a nice preview of what we can expect down the road. The 300-pound Hargrave showed some nice inside rush moves in an adjusted role against a banged-up Colts interior. If he can be this disruptive next week, Pittsburgh’s best remaining rusher — James Harrison — could open up a sizable sack lead over the rest of his defensive teammates.

PITTSBURGH, PA – DECEMBER 6: Punter Pat McAfee #1 of the Indianapolis Colts attempts to tackle Antonio Brown #84 of the Pittsburgh Steelers as he returns a punt for a 71 yard touchdown in the fourth quarter of the game at Heinz Field on December 6, 2015 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Aller/Getty Images)