What better way to spend your Christmas than sitting around the fire and watching sports? The holiday season brings us not only joy, but a full slate of sports games. There are games all day long for football and basketball fans to enjoy while they take in the Christmas spirit.
The NFL has two games on Christmas day. The Cleveland Browns visit the Green Bay Packers at 4:30 p.m. EST. The Indianapolis Colts take on the Arizona Cardinals at 8:15 p.m. EST. The Christmas NFL slate features two of the best quarterbacks in the league taking on two of the best young running backs in the league.
The Browns’ Baker Mayfield goes up against a Packers’ defense that slowed down Kyler Murray, Patrick Mahomes and Russell Wilson in consecutive weeks. A great performance from running back Nick Chubb will be imperative for a Browns’ win. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers looks to keep up his great play and win the second Christmas game of his career. In 2011, Rodgers threw for 283 yards and five touchdowns in a 35-21 Christmas win over the Chicago Bears.
The Colts’ Jonathan Taylor is putting together an MVP caliber season and will look to run all over a Cardinals’ defense that has given up the seventh most rushing yards through ten games. Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray goes up against a Colts defense that has given up the seventh most passing yards after the ten-game mark. Fans should expect a lot of points in this matchup.
The NBA has a longstanding tradition of playing on Christmas, typically having a star-studded slate lined up for their viewers. Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks are making their way up to Madison Square Garden to take on Julius Randle and the New York Knicks in a rematch of the first-round of the Eastern Conference Playoffs to start the day off at 12:00 p.m. The Hawks won in five games, with Trae Young becoming the most hated man in New York.
The Boston Celtics and Jayson Tatum are attempting to take down the 2021 NBA Champion Milwaukee Bucks and their MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo at 2:30 p.m. EST. The game between Eastern Conference rivals will be a close one, with the series being an even three games apiece since 2020.
Two-time NBA MVP Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors are going up against the reigning Western Conference Champion Phoenix Suns and their dynamic guard duo, Chris Paul and Devin Booker, at 5:00 p.m. EST. Despite being one of the best players in the league, Curry is averaging a measly 12.3 points on 29.2% from the field in seven Christmas Day games.
The star-studded Brooklyn Nets are taking on LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the Los Angeles Lakers at 8:00 p.m. in what could be a preview of the 2022 NBA Finals. The two teams are favorites to win their conferences. The matchup is nothing new to Kevin Durant and LeBron, as they’ve matched up on Christmas in 2016, 2017 and 2018.
The 22-year-old superstar Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks are visiting Donovan Mitchell and the Utah Jazz to end off the night at 10:30 p.m. In 2020, the Mavs and Jazz met three times with the Jazz winning two.
As far as college football is concerned, there will be a bowl game taking place on Christmas with the teams playing announced at a later date. The Camellia Bowl will start at 2:30 p.m. and take place in Montgomery, Alabama at the Cramton Bowl. The matchup features a team from the Mid-American Conference and a team from the Sun Belt Conference.
