Thanksgiving can be a day for excesses.

Three plates of goodies and a triple helping of NFL are forecast for homes all over Richmond.

Just about the time the golden big bird is coming out of the oven, the Chicago Bears will kick off against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field.

After some digestion, it’ll be time for the hard-to-resist sweet potato pie and whipped cream with football action moving to Texas for the Las Vegas Raiders versus the Dallas Cowboys at AT&T Stadium.

A little later, perhaps after a few winks, the leftovers are on the table and the Buffalo Bills versus the New Orleans Saints will be on the TV.

What better combination than turkey and pigskin?

Here are a few Turkey Day appetizers:

Detroit Lions: Have played on Thanksgiving Day every holiday since 1934, usually coming on TV soon after the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade from New York.

A highlight was in 1962 when the Lions handed the Green Bay Packers their only loss of the season. Led by Virginian Roger Brown, the Lions sacked the Packers’ Hall of Fame quarterback Bart Starr 11 times.

Chicago Bears: Have played on Thanksgiving 36 times with a 19-15-2 record.

Two players to watch are both named Khalil. Khalil Mack ranks with the league’s best pass rushers. Khalil Herbert is the rookie running back from Virginia Tech, already with 364 yards rushing.

Las Vegas Raiders: The Raiders, previously representing Oakland and Los Angeles, are 3-4 in seven previous holiday appearances.

Wearing No. 99 for the silver and black is native Richmonder Clelin Ferrell, now in his third season out of Clemson University. The Benedictine graduate has seen limited duty of late and has been the source of trade rumors.

Dallas Cowboys: The Cowboys have played on Thanksgiving most years since 1966 and are 31-21-1.

No Dallas Thanksgiving story is complete without mention of quarterback Clint Longley, who came off the bench in 1974 to rally the Cowboys past Washington.

Trailing 23-17 with 28 seconds left, Longley’s “Hail Mary” pass to Drew Pearson covered 50 yards and gave “America’s Team” a 24-23 win over the Washington team.

Buffalo Bills: The Bills are 4-4-1 on Turkey Day.

The holiday attraction has featured many of the NFL’s great receivers, with the Bills’ Stefon Diggs ranking with the finest. When quarterback Josh Allen dials long distance, it’s generally to Diggs, the Alexandria native who is on path to exceed 1,000 receiving yards for the fourth time in his career.

New Orleans Saints: The Saints are 3-0 on Thanksgiving. Few NFL players have a more unusual backstory than Saints’ defensive lineman David Onyemata, who has 16 career sacks.

The 6-foot-4, 300-pound Onyemata was born and raised in Lagos, Nigeria, and came to North America to play for a most non-traditional college “powerhouse,” the University of Manitoba, Canada.

So what’s starting for gridiron buffs at half past noon is going on until almost midnight.

Anyone up for a cold turkey sandwich with mayo?