The Green Bay Packers delivered their most meaningful holiday win in recent memory, and the reviews coming afterward sounded more like legacy declarations than seasonal praise.

Thanksgiving football has quietly turned into an annual stage for Jordan Love and the Packers, a rhythm that the team clearly wouldn’t oppose continuing.

Thursday was his loudest serving yet, a 31-24 win over the Detroit Lions (7-5) at Ford Field, powered by four touchdown throws, including two clutch ones on fourth downs.

Micah Parsons, another standout in the matchup, delivered strong praise during a postgame media availability when asked to describe Love’s intangible traits visible in the game.

“Just expectations as usually is and he's gonna show up injured, hurt, and he's gonna fight for his guys and play at the highest level,” said Parsons, via Ryan Wood of USA Today. “He's an ultimate competitor. There’s not too many quarterbacks I can put up that fight like him. He just comes in and work like he’s making a night and day jumps.”

Those comments were part of Parsons’ wider point on effort consistency. He was explaining that some quarterbacks manage crises, but only a handful attack improvement even while banged up. It wasn’t just a toughness nod; it was Love's mentality breakdown.

Article Continues Below

Now three years into Love’s run as the starting field general, the Packers have been scheduled to play on Thanksgiving in each of those seasons, first against the Detroit Lions in 2023, followed by a night kick against the Miami Dolphins in 2024, and again versus Detroit in 2025. Each contest ended the same way, with a Green Bay win, and Love leveled up his performance every time.

The matchup itself carried season weight as Green Bay and Detroit both entered Thursday trailing the Chicago Bears in the NFC North, making the game more elimination swerve than victory lap opportunity.  Love approached it like a QB who understood the assignment — finishing 18-of-30 for 234 yards and four touchdowns, tying a personal career-high.

The franchise footnote didn’t stop there, as Love also became the first Green Bay QB since Brett Favre in 1994, and the first since Brett Favre in 1994 on Thanksgiving to match that four-touchdown bar.

With the win, the Packers (8-3-1) now own the head-to-head tiebreaker over Detroit after sweeping both meetings this season and have a chance to move into the division lead if the Bears fall to the Philadelphia Eagles on Black Friday.