Not all football is created equal. Case in point: the pigskin is better served after the pig itself. That means on Thanksgiving, where football is the holy grail, where even the most uninterested, scornful Americans point their eyes toward the set because by some holy decree, they're supposed to watch football on Thanksgiving.

There a few givens every Thanksgiving, aside from your uncle's intoxication. You know some iteration of the Lions and Cowboys will take the field, that a really good team will play a not-so-good team, and that one matchup will pit division rivals against each other. A lot of the time, you can also expect a blowout and a pitifully low-scoring game as well.

This season's games look promising. New England-the Jets is the night-cap, and it needs no explanation. These two teams don't like each other, and the back stories alone could draw you in. The Lions-Texans is probably our best shot at a blowout, but it wouldn't be too surprising to see Detroit keep it close. The Cowboys-Redskins, we're all hoping, is going to be a classic NFC East dogfight.

Here are the 5 most important reasons you should step away from the stuffing and snap on the TV Thursday.

Mark Sanchez
Many in New York are saying the Jets need to virtually win out to make the playoffs. That dreary outlook notwithstanding, this is the most important game of the Jets' season. There's always reason to get up for the Pats and disgruntled Jets fans will savor the distraction that is hating Tom Brady. Reuters
Houston Texans
Aside from one game in which they snuck by the Bears behind a measly 13-point offensive output (okay, their defense annihilated the Bears' offense), the Texans have been a scoring juggernaut this season, putting up 30+ on the scoreboard five times. If there's one thing football hobbyists love, it's a touchdown-filled blood-letting. Look for that during the 12:30 p.m. contest. The Texans can run and pass the ball with equal force, and star wideout Andre Johnson is beginning to hit his stride. Reuters
Dallas Cowboys
Aside from the disappointing Eagles, nobody is really out of the top spot in the NFC East. Sitting behind the G-Men in 2nd place are the Cowboys, followed by the Redskins. It's midseason, it's the NFC East, it's parity, and it's Thanksgiving. If you're family isn't mercilessly fighting during the holiday, then these two teams definitely will be. Every year this division is a dog fight to the finish. It's looking no different this season. Reuters
Tony Romo
Tony Romo has a higher career completion percentage and career QB rating than Tom Brady. You heard that right. Why don't you ever Romo's name stapled onto 'greatness?' Well, because Romo disappears during big games. Thursday is one of those huge games. The 'Boys need this midseason battle if they want to emerge from the muck of the NFC East. Reuters
Washington Redskins
For the casual fan, RG3 is going to be a lot of fun to watch Thursday afternoon. With the turkey gutted and your stomach anything but, RG3 should get to his scrambling antics on national TV. The questions remains if he can do so mistake free, though. The rookie phenom has had a knack of late of making dumb throws and coughing up the football. Reuters
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