The Green Bay Packers will play the Chicago Bears on Thanksgiving night. According to Tom Silverstein, that’s also when they will retire Brett Favre’s number.
Or, more accurately, that’s the game in which they’ll unveil Favre’s name on the inner facade of Lambeau Field next to those of Bart Starr, Reggie White, Don Hutson, Ray Nitschke and Tony Canadeo — the five other Packers to have their numbers retired.
The number will technically be retired when Favre is inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame on July 18. Of course, only corporate sponsors will actually be able to get a first-person glimpse of Favre on that evening. The game is an opportunity for actual fans to be a part of a Brett Favre event.
Although the full 2015 schedule won’t be released until Tuesday evening, the Bears game was leaked early. That, in and of itself, is a pretty big deal.
While the Packers have played many games on Thanksgiving, most of those have been with the Detroit Lions. The Lions, along with the Dallas Cowboys, always have a home game on Thanksgiving. An evening game, which can feature any two teams, was first added in 2006.
The Packers have never played in that game.
In fact, this year will mark just the second time in history the Packers have played a Thanksgiving game at home. The first time was in 1923, when they beat the Hammond Pros, 19-0.