4 Ideas For Thanksgiving Games Adults Can Play
November 19, 2014 by
Every year when Dallas and Detroit play on Thanksgiving day I try and get a friendly gambling contest going with my inlaws. Usually they don't go for anything sports related, and we end up playing Connect 4, but never due to a lack of effort and enthusiasm on my part.
Don't get me wrong ... I LOVE Connect 4 ... but also thought it would be great to list out other Thanksgiving day friendly gaming traditions that people may have. If you have something good, please share in the comments below. If you are looking for ideas, here is a list that I've compiled from previous turkey days.
1) Connect 4 Tournament
We always play for $1 a game. I normally come out on top :)
2) Football Squares
For the Lions or Cowboys game you can draw cards and add up the football game score at the end of each quarter to see who wins the pot (or is free of dish duty). Separate out an Ace,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, and 10 from a deck of cards. Have everyone who wants in draw a card. Add the last digit of the football team's scores together at the end of each quarter to determine the winner. If it's 14-7, then the person with the Ace wins because 14+7=21. The last digit of 21 is 1 (ace is for 1 and the ten is for 0).
You could also try our football squares app, explained here.
3) Thanksgiving NFL Fantasy Football
Everyone gets assigned fantasy 2 fantasy players from Dallas, Detroit, and their opponents. Everyone draws two fantasy players from the teams playing on Thanksgiving day to form their team. Scoring is as follows:
- Touchdown: 6 points
- Rushing Yards: 1 point per 10 yards
- Receiving Yards: 1 point per 10 yards
- Passing Yards: 1 point per 25 yards
- Field Goals: 3 points for field goal
- Extra Points: 1 point
Below is a sheet of players to choose when your family and friends arrive. It is separated into by team and playerin case your gathering does not span both games and you only want to choose players from one of the Thanksgiving day games.
The first two games on Thanksgiving Day 2014 are:
11:30 AM CST - Bears at Lions
3:30 PM CST - Eagles at Cowboys
Here are 6 players from each team playing in one of the first two games that we recommend drafting (i.e. writing on a sheet of paper, tearing off the individual names, flipping upside down, and having people select at random):
MAKE SURE TO CHECK THE INJURY REPORT THE DAY OF!
| qb | bears | jay cutler |
| rb | bears | matt forte |
| receiver | bears | alshon jeffery |
| receiver | bears | martellius bennett |
| receiver | bears | brandon marshall |
| kicker | bears | robbie gould |
| qb | lions | matthew stafford |
| rb | lions | joique bell |
| rb | lions | reggie bush |
| receiver | lions | golden tate |
| receiver | lions | calvin johnson |
| kicker | lions | matt prater |
| qb | cowboys | tony romo |
| rb | cowboys | demarco murray |
| receiver | cowboys | dez bryant |
| receiver | cowboys | jason witten |
| receiver | cowboys | terrance williams |
| kicker | cowboys | dan bailey |
| qb | eagles | mark sanchez |
| rb | eagles | lesean mccoy |
| receiver | eagles | jeremy maclin |
| receiver | eagles | jordan matthews |
| receiver | eagles | riley cooper |
| kicker | eagles | cody parkey |
There is also a late game if you still have a party going into the night. 7:30 PM CST - Seahawks at 49ers - here is a link to the player sheets.
4) Chess, Checkers, or Cribbage Tournament
Draw up a simple bracket for all the adults that want to participate in a checkers tournament (or chess if you family is feeling witty). Again, fun to have everyone throw in a dollar or dish washing duty wager.
What games do you play on Thanksgiving? Please share your ideas in the comments below.
Happy Thanksgiving!
