The Turducken: Why this strange three-bird creation became an NFL tradition
The legendary John Madden made this dish an NFL Thanksgiving tradition that players are now obsessed with. Here’s what it is and how it came to be.
Every Thanksgiving, football fans tune in for the Detroit Lions, the Dallas Cowboys, and a legendary dish that has become just as essential as pumpkin pie: the turducken.
It’s the quirky, over-the-top culinary creation that became an NFL icon thanks to the late John Madden, who turned a Southern Louisiana specialty into one of the most famous foods in sports.
What exactly is a Turducken?
The name gives away the basic idea, but not all of the culinary chaos behind it.
A true turducken is:
- A boneless chicken, stuffed inside
- a boneless duck, stuffed inside
- a boneless turkey, which gets roasted until the whole thing fuses together into a layered, three-bird masterpiece.
It’s part feast, part science project, and part spectacle, exactly the sort of thing John Madden adored.
Nobody brought Thanksgiving football to life like John Madden ❤️ pic.twitter.com/FgoP2WlcoW
— NFL (@NFL) November 26, 2025
How the Turducken became an NFL staple
While the dish existed long before the NFL spotlight, its football fame can be traced back to 1996, when Madden encountered a turducken during a New Orleans broadcast. Immediately fascinated, he introduced it on-air, slicing it open with the enthusiasm of a sideline reporter discovering fire for the first time.
Fans loved it. Players loved it. Networks loved it. So Madden made it a tradition, the signature food of his Thanksgiving broadcasts and even the official dish of his All-Madden Team. And after particularly dominant performances, he’d famously hand out turkey legs to star players, often talking about the turducken as if it were the secret fuel behind elite football.
Over the years, the dish has generated its own mythology. Last season, viewers watched Gordon Ramsay learn how to make one on FOX and saw Tom Brady try his first bite on air, immediately declaring, “That’s amazing!”
Patrick Mahomes says he hopes to join the NFL tradition of biting into a turducken following a win on Thanksgiving 😅
— KC Sports Network (@KCSportsNetwork) November 25, 2025
“I’m thinking of the turducken man, John Madden — that to me is the coolest thing… to be able to be a part of that, I think that would be a special moment.” pic.twitter.com/pQ8DOP4VVQ
And of course, whenever the Thanksgiving MVP trophy is awarded, the turducken is never far from the spotlight.
Today, the turducken lives on as a tribute to John Madden’s personality: big, joyful, and utterly original. It represents a slice of football history that goes beyond wins and losses, and a reminder that Thanksgiving games are about fun, tradition, and sharing something memorable.
Turducken, touchdowns and @TomBrady 🦃🏈
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 26, 2025
The GOAT looks back on his favorite Thanksgiving memories before calling @Packers at @Lions on FOX 📺 pic.twitter.com/5W5CXjdOIF
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