The NFL already did the San Francisco 49ers a disservice by making them the "road" team for Week 1's cross-Pacific showdown against the Los Angeles Rams in Melbourne, Australia.
And there's another disservice with the Niners playing another international game, a "home" bout in Mexico City, Mexico.
So, why not do a third disservice, right? Especially if it involves denying San Francisco's players a chance to spend Thanksgiving with family and friends.
That's what two schedule predictions suggested in the days counting down until the official 2026 regular-season schedule release on Thursday, May 14.
FanSided predicts 49ers visit Cowboys for Thanksgiving
Schedule predictions are turning into something of a mock draft: wholly wild guesses with a little bit of logic sprinkled in.
Perhaps that's where FanSided's Mike Phillips went when he predicted several of the league's primetime showdowns and high-profile games, including the three-game slate of tilts this Thanksgiving.
His prediction has the 49ers visiting the Cowboys for Dallas' annual tradition of being the home team for the holiday:
The 4:30pm ET slot is a marquee window and should have the highest ratings of the day with Dallas. The NFL will likely want to save the Cowboys' divisional foes for more featured windows, so we'll lock in the 49ers for a massive clash among potential NFC playoff teams.
True, a Niners-Cowboys matchup will have no problem garnering ratings even if there's a rumored leak of Dallas hosting the Philadelphia Eagles instead, subsequently reinforced by ESPN's Adam Schefter.
But it's not the only prediction circling San Francisco on Turkey Day.
CBS Sports' John Breech predicts 49ers get Thursday Night Football
Closing out the trio of Thanksgiving bouts is what CBS Sports' John Breech has San Francisco doing in his schedule prediction, hosting the Denver Broncos on Thursday Night Football.
A nod to head coach Kyle Shanahan being a reason why is pretty good:
Over the past 10 years, the prime-time Thanksgiving game has featured at least one playoff team from the prior season, so it seems like a lock that we'll see at least one 2025 playoff team in this slot, and possibly two. The Broncos haven't played on Thanksgiving since 2009, so this would end their drought. Not to mention, Kyle Shanahan served as a Broncos ball boy when he was younger, so you have a perfect connection for a Thanksgiving night game.
Related story: 49ers 2026 schedule release date, rumors, leaks and more
Meanwhile, the 49ers last played on Thanksgiving back in 2023 when they upended the Seattle Seahawks 31-13 at Lumen Field, prompting tight end George Kittle to hand out turkey to awaiting fans in the crowd after the game.
Perhaps the NFL realizes, though, how it's asked a lot from the Niners already this year, schedule-wise, so it avoids putting them on a short week on a holiday.
It's the NFL, though, so probably not.
Add us as a preferred source on Google