Last year the football world lost one of its all-time greats when NFL icon John Madden passed away. But starting in just a few weeks, the league plans to honor the Hall of Famer with a special yearly celebration.
On Friday, the NFL announced that the “John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration” will begin on November 24 with a series of events that honor the NFL icon. In a statement, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said that the event would honor his memory and the impact he had on the NFL.
“No one cared more or contributed more to our game than John Madden,” Goodell said, via the Associated Press. “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.”
Madden is renown for many things, but his decades-long tradition of being the voice of Thanksgiving football and giving out turkey legs to the winning team ranks among his most cherished.
John Madden first introduced the turkey element to Thanksgiving back in 1989 when he presented a turkey leg to NFL legend Reggie White following his performance in a win over the Cowboys. It became a tradition when he did the same for Emmitt Smith and Troy Aikman the following year.
Madden is now as synonymous with the NFL on Thanksgiving as the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions.
It’s fitting that the league chooses to honor the NFL legend in as many ways as possible.