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T
he New England Patriots will be busy on Thanksgiving Day. The team will be playing on the holiday for the first time in a decade.
Karen Guergian of the Boston Herald was the first to report that New England will be facing off against the Minnesota Vikings on Thanksgiving in the 2022 regular season.
“Per source, the Patriots will be playing on Thanksgiving this year in a prime-time game Week 12 against the Vikings,” she tweeted on Thursday.
Fans in New England will be able to take a post-feast nap as the Patriots won’t play till primetime on the holiday.
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When Was the Last Time New England Played on Thanksgiving?
It has been quite some time since the Patriots played on Thanksgiving. In 2012, New England played the New York Jets at Metlife Stadium in front of a crowd of nearly 80,000 thousand people.
Patriots fans will remember that day fondly as New England beat New York 49-19. Tom Brady threw for three touchdowns and zero interceptions while Steven Ridley ran for 97 yards and a touchdown.
That game might be better known to some as the “butt fumble” when Mark Sanchez ran into his own offensive lineman’s backside and fumbled the ball.
New England finished that season with a record of 12-4 but ended up losing to the Baltimore Ravens in the conference championship 28-13.
When Was the Last Time New England Was in Minnesota?
The last time that the Patriots were in Minnesota, things didn’t go as planned. When New England goes up against the Vikings in 2022, it will be the first time that the Patriots have played there since 2018 when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated New England in Super Bowl LII.
Nick Foles tore the Patriots defense apart as Malcolm Butler sat on the bench. Foles threw for 373 yards and three touchdowns while also catching a touchdown pass on the infamous “Philly Special” play. Corey Clement was the leading receiver for Philadelphia with four receptions for 100 yards and a touchdown.
Brady had the game of his life throwing for 505 yards and three touchdowns. So did Danny Amendola and Chris Hogan who racked up 152 receiving yards and 128 receiving yards. Rob Gronkowski also tallied 116 yards and two touchdowns.
The Patriots haven’t played the Vikings in Minnesota since 2014. New England blew out Minnesota 30-7. Ridley ran for 101 yards and a touchdown while Julian Edelman had six receptions for 81 yards and a touchdown.
It was a reunion of sorts as Brady faced off against his former backup Matt Cassel. He showed why he was a backup throwing for only 202 yards and four interceptions.
In 2022, the Vikings offense is led by Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and Kirk Cousins. Last season Thielen had 67 receptions for 726 yards and 10 touchdowns in a down year for the wideout. Cousins had a quietly impressive season throwing for 4,221 yards and 33 touchdowns while only throwing seven interceptions. Jefferson had over 100 receptions for 1,616 yards and 10 touchdowns.
So mark your calendars Patriots fans. New England will be playing on Thanksgiving in what will be a perfect end to the holiday for fans (if the Patriots can pull out a win).
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