EAGAN, Minn. — Those of us of a certain age can remember welcoming John Madden into our homes on Thanksgiving.

Although hundreds or even thousands of miles away, Madden's delivery made it feel like he was there, grateful for the opportunity of a gigantic football family gathering.

The tradition will be renewed again throughout Thursday during the three scheduled NFL games (Bills at Lions, Giants at Cowboys and Patriots at Vikings) as the league introduces the inaugural "John Madden Thanksgiving Celebration" in honor of the Pro Football Hall of Famer who made his mark on so many as a coach, broadcaster and innovator who passed away Dec. 28, 2021, at age 85.

Minnesota (8-2) is set to host a Thanksgiving game for the first time in franchise history, welcoming New England (6-4) in front of an NBC nationwide television audience.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7:20 p.m. (CT), and the Vikings will also be wearing their #PrimetimePurple uniforms.

Each network (CBS has Buffalo-Detroit and FOX has New York-Dallas) will have special broadcast tributes to Madden and select a "Madden Player of the Game."

Each stadium's field will have a Madden logo, and players will have Madden decals on their helmets.

The Vikings are 6-2 all-time on Thanksgiving, having gone 3-2 at Detroit and 3-0 at Dallas on the holiday. It will be Minnesota's first appearance since 2017.

Note: We usually include comments from Vikings Offensive Coordinator Wes Phillips, Defensive Coordinator Ed Donatell and Special Teams Coordinator Matt Daniels, but they did not have their media sessions because of the short week.

BROADCAST TELEVISION

NBC (KARE 11 in the Twin Cities)

Kickoff: 7:20 p.m. (CT)

Play-by-Play: Mike Tirico

Analysts: Tony Dungy & Jason Garrett

Sideline reporter: Melissa Stark

ON MOBILE

Because it is a national broadcast, fans from coast to coast will be able to watch the game on their iOS mobile devices with the Vikings app or Vikings mobile site (Safari browser only).

LOCAL RADIO

Radio: KFAN (100.3-FM), KTLK (1130-AM) and the five-state Vikings Radio Network

Radio Pregame Show: Hosted by Mike Mussman (5 p.m.)

Play-by-Play: Paul Allen

Analyst: Pete Bercich

Sideline reporter: Ben Leber

New this year: People in Minnesota will be able to listen to the Vikings Radio Network broadcast through the iHeartRadio app on their smart devices.

SPANISH RADIO BROADCAST

New for the 2022 season, the Vikings will air a Spanish broadcast of all games.

You can hear the Vikings on Tico Sports at WREY "El Rey" 94.9-FM and 630-AM in the Twin Cities and on Tico-Sports.com, elrey949fm.com and vikings.com. Additionally, the stream will be available as part of NFL+.

Play-by-Play: Gabriel Rios

Color commentary: Isaias Nunez Zendejas

NATIONAL RADIO

Westwood ONE

Play-by-Play: Bill Rosinski

Analyst: Ryan Harris

SATELLITE RADIO

New England: SiriusXM 82 or 225 and the SXM App

Minnesota: SiriusXM 85 or 227 and the SXM App

National: SiriusXM 88 and the SXM App

VIKINGS MOBILE APP

Keep the Vikings nearby wherever you go with the Minnesota Vikings mobile app. A source for news and exclusive features, the app also will stream video broadcasts of games for people in the market/broadcast area of each game.

The Minnesota Vikings mobile app is available for iPhone and Android.

ADDITIONAL OPTIONS

Click here for the full bevy of options that include over-the-air, cable, satellite, over-the-top and streaming methods.

NFL+ AND NFL+ PREMIUM

Start your free trial of NFL+ today to watch Vikings preseason games live or on-demand.

NFL+ and NFL+ Premium provide all the action when you are on the go. It is available in the NFL app and at NFL.com/plus.

NFL+ is available for $4.99/month or $39.99/year and offers the following:

· Live out-of-market preseason games across devices

· Live local and prime-time regular-season and postseason games on your phone or tablet

· Live game audio (home, away & national calls) for every game of the season

· NFL library programming on-demand, ad-free

NFL+ Premium is available for $9.99/month or $79.99/year and offers all of the NFL+ features and the following:

· Full-game replays across devices (ad-free)

· Condensed game replays across devices (ad-free)

· Coaches film (ad-free)

SERIES HISTORY

Minnesota is 4-9 all-time in 13 games against New England, which has a five-game winning streak in the rare series.

The Vikings are trying to secure their first win against the Patriots since September 2000 when Daunte Culpepper threw touchdowns to Johnny McWilliams and Matthew Hatchette in the second quarter of a 21-13 win.