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The Patriots are playing on Thanksgiving in 2022. For this one, history is on their side

Mark Daniels, The Providence Journal
·5 min read

Thanksgiving has historically been a good day for the Patriots.

On Thursday night, the NFL released its 2022 schedule and for the first time in 10 years, the Patriots will play on Thanksgiving when they take on the Minnesota Vikings that night. This marks the organization’s sixth game on the holiday and it’s a day that has certainly made the Patriots thankful for several reasons.

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The Patriots are 4-1 in their previous five Thanksgiving games. The last Pats loss on this holiday came over 20 years ago. It’s quite possible, however, no Patriots game on this day will ever repeat the same level of success as the 2012 game against the New York Jets. That game resulted in the infamous butt fumble by Jets QB Mark Sanchez in New England's 49-19 win.

1. The Butt Fumble, 2012: Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez collided with the backside of lineman Brandon Moore and fumbled the ball. It was recovered and returned for a touchdown by the Patriots' Steve Gregory. The play was part of a disastrous sequence for the Jets, who lost three fumbles as the Patriots scored three touchdowns in 52 seconds. New England went on to win 49-19.

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We’ll see if this year’s matchup, which kicks off in primetime at 8:20 p.m., can match up to the team’s previous Thanksgiving games. The Pats beat the Detroit Lions, 45-24, in 2010 and again in 2002 by a score of 20-12. The Patriots last loss on the holiday in 2000 during Bill Belichick’s first season in New England when the Lions won, 34-9.

The first-ever Patriots Thanksgiving game was in 1984 when Tony Eason led the Pats to a 20-17 comeback over the Dallas Cowboys.

Is the Patriots’ schedule in 2022 tough?

After the schedule was released, the initial thought was that the Patriots are going play a lot of tough games in 2022. The team’s hardest stretch comes at the end of the season where they finish up with three road games in Arizona, Las Vegas and Buffalo, which is the regular-season finale. Before they play the Bills, they welcome in the AFC champion Cincinnati Bengals and the always pesky Miami Dolphins.

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That is a hard stretch of games, especially if the Pats are fighting for a playoff spot. However, according to the 2022 strength of schedule rankings, which combined 2021 records for all opponents and calculates a combined winning percentage, the Patriots are in the middle. Their schedule is ranked as the 16th most difficult this season with their opponents' records sitting at 143-144-2 for a .498 winning percentage.

Is the Patriots’ schedule in 2022 easy?

The Patriots don’t have the most difficult schedule in the NFL next fall. The team’s easiest stretch is in the beginning of the 2022 NFL season.

There are a handful of questions surrounding the teams on the Patriots docket prior to their Week 10 bye. The Pats kickoff against Miami, but then go to Pittsburgh who will be without Ben Roethlisberger and might start rookie QB Kenny Pickett. Their stretch from Week 6-to-Week 9 sees them up against Cleveland, Chicago, the Jets and the Indianapolis Colts. The Browns could have quarterback Deshaun Watson, but might not due to his legal situation as he’s facing 22 civil lawsuits from women accusing him of sexual misconduct or sexual assault. The Bears have second-year quarterback Justin Fields, who is exciting, but an unknown commodity in the NFL. Then there’s the Jets with Zach Wilson and the Colts who traded for Matt Ryan.

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The Patriots will have to take care of business before their difficult stretch of tough games at the end of the season.

Will the Patriots play on Christmas?

The Patriots have never played on Christmas Day. However, they will play on Christmas Eve this season when they take on the Bengals in Week 16. The Pats have played five games on Christmas Eve with a record of 4-1. They last beat the Buffalo Bills, 37-16, in 2017 and the Jets, 41-3, during the 2016 season.

We’ll see if the Pats have more holiday success against a better opponent this season.

The Patriots' 2022 NFL schedule:

Preseason Game 1: Patriots vs. New York Giants, TBD

Preseason Game 2: Patriots vs. Carolina Panthers, TBD

Preseason Game 3: Patriots at Las Vegas Raiders, TBD

Week 1: Patriots at Miami Dolphins, 1 p.m. (Sept. 11)

Week 2: Patriots at Pittsburgh Steelers, 1 p.m. (Sept. 18)

Week 3: Patriots vs. Baltimore Ravens, 1 p.m. (Sept. 25)

Week 4: Patriots at Green Bay Packers, 4:25 p.m. (Oct. 2)

Week 5: Patriots vs. Detroit Lions, 1 p.m. (Oct. 9)

Week 6: Patriots at Cleveland, 1 p.m. (Oct. 16)

Week 7: Patriots vs. Chicago Bears, 8:15 p.m. (Monday night, Oct. 24)

Week 8: Patriots at New York Jets, 1 p.m. (Oct. 30)

Week 9: Patriots vs. Indianapolis Colts, 1 p.m. (Nov. 6)

Week 10: Bye week

Week 11: Patriots vs. New York Jets, 1 p.m. (Nov. 20)

Week 12: Patriots at Minnesota Vikings, 8:20 p.m. (Thanksgiving, Nov. 24)

Week 13: Patriots vs. Buffalo Bills, 8:15 p.m. (Thursday night, Dec. 1)

Week 14: Patriots at Arizona Cardinals, 8:15 p.m. (Monday night, Dec. 12)

Week 15: Patriots at Las Vegas Raiders, 8:20 p.m. (Dec. 18)

Week 16: Patriots vs. Cincinnati Bengals, 1 p.m. (Saturday, Dec. 24)

Week 17: Patriots vs. Miami Dolphins, 1 p.m. (Jan. 1)

Week 18: Patriots at Buffalo Bills, TBD (Jan. 7 or 8)

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Patriots 2022 schedule: Thanksgiving game will be a highlight