According to NFL Media, the Bears-Lions game averaged 37.5 million viewers on CBS, which makes it the most-watched early Thanksgiving Day game on record. As a whole, it was a record-setting Thanksgiving Day for the NFL,

The Detroit Lions were able to set a new NFL record for viewership on Thanksgiving in their normal time slot.

The early Thanksgiving window featuring the Lions always performed well not because of the Lions but because it was football, it was on TV, and there was nothing else on. Now that the Lions have transmogrified into a powerhouse,

After setting the all-time viewership record for the early Thanksgiving game last year, the Lions crushed that mark in their win over the Bears last week.

Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16), defensive tackle DJ Reader (98), wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown (14), running back Jahmyr Gibbs (26) and linebacker Al-Quadin Muhammad (69) celebrate their win against the Bears with a turkey drumstick Thanksgiving Day in Detroit. / Kimberly P. Mitchell / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys are staples of Thanksgiving entertainment. Here's the full history of why the teams play each turkey day.

Few combinations go together better than Thanksgiving and football and this year's ratings bear that out. Per Austin Karp of Sports Business Journal, the NFL had its most-watched Thanksgiving ever this year,