Patrick Mahomes will be hoping to checking off more than one career first in Thursday's game against the Cowboys.
The Chiefs quarterback is set to play in the first Thanksgiving Day game of his NFL career as well as his first game at AT&T Stadium, as unbelievable as that sounds. Mahomes has never played at Dallas' home stadium. It'll be extra special, as he grew up just two hours away and frequently attended Cowboys games as a kid.
Fast forward many years later, and Mahomes will be taking the field against his dad's favorite team in hopes of keeping the Chiefs' playoff hopes alive. The Chiefs (6-5) may have a long shot at winning the AFC West, but they're still favored by several sportsbooks to win the conference even though they're a handful of games back from the 10-2 Patriots.
Kansas City took care of business against the Colts last week and will likely adopt a similar must-win mentality going into Thursday's highly anticipated holiday game. Not only does Mahomes want the dub, he also wants to partake in the iconic tradition of the Turducken.
"I’m thinking of the turducken man, John Madden, that to me is the coolest thing. Obviously a legend of the game... to be able to be a part of that, I think that would be a special moment," Mahomes said in a press conference earlier this week.
Patrick Mahomes says he hopes to join the NFL tradition of biting into a turducken following a win on Thanksgiving 😅
“I’m thinking of the turducken man, John Madden — that to me is the coolest thing… to be able to be a part of that, I think that would be a special moment.” pic.twitter.com/pQ8DOP4VVQ
— KC Sports Network (@KCSportsNetwork) November 25, 2025
We'll see which team will get to feast on Thanksgiving.
Mahomes has thrown just one touchdown against three interceptions in his last three games and will be looking for a big bounce-back game against Dallas. Chiefs stars Travis Kelce and Rashee Rice have dominated targets in recent weeks, but come Thursday's contest Mahomes may stick to the Chiefs' mantra this season: everybody eats.
Kickoff for Chiefs vs. Cowboys is at 4:30 p.m. ET.
More NFL on Sports Illustrated