The Pro Football Hall of Fame is set to induct five legends at its enshrinement ceremony in Canton, Ohio, this weekend, as Drew Brees, Roger Craig, Larry Fitzgerald, Luke Kuechly and Adam Vinatieri have all officially earned football immortality.
Before we get there, however, we have the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on Thursday night.
Each year, ahead of induction weekend, the Hall helps kick off the NFL’s preseason with an exhibition bout from Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium. This year, it’ll be the Cardinals and Panthers facing off.
While it is still only the preseason, there are still a handful of intriguing storylines to watch in this one. From a rookie signal-caller’s first NFL action to the return of the sport America knows and loves, here are three reasons to be excited about tonight’s Hall of Fame Game between Arizona and Carolina.
Two big debuts for the Cardinals
Thursday is a night of firsts for the Cardinals, starting with Mike LaFleur. The 39-year-old will make his game-day head-coaching debut in this one after spending the past three seasons coordinating the Rams’ offense.
“We get to pull the training wheels off,” LaFleur said ahead of Thursday’s contest. “There’s no coaches behind [our players]. There’s no coaches prepping them. … It’ll be cool to see just a lot of these guys’ demeanors, if you will, when it’s real, when the bullets are live. Just because it’s preseason and the win/loss doesn’t count, it doesn’t mean that this isn’t real football.”
“We don’t need to peak [tonight], we just need to continue to improve,” he added. “… What’s going to be different is because it’s live, naturally, the competition level is going to go up.”
On that note, Carson Beck—who’s battling for Arizona’s backup quarterback spot behind starter Jacoby Brissett—will also make his NFL debut on Thursday night. The 24-year-old was drafted this past April in the third round out of Miami.
“I had no clue I was going to start,” Beck said after Tuesday’s practice in Glendale. “I thought I was going to play, but I had no expectations. Obviously our schedule has been crazy right now. But I’m looking forward to it. ... It’s a game at the end of the day. Not really any nerves. More excitement than anything.”
The Panthers’ intriguing rookie class
While the Panthers unfortunately lost third-round pick Chris Brazzell II to a season-ending PCL injury this week—putting a halt on his rookie campaign before it even began—Carolina’s roster still has a handful of first-year pros that will be worth keeping an eye on tonight.
At the top of the list? Quarterback Haynes King. An undrafted free agent out of Georgia Tech, King signed with the Panthers at the end of April and has been given the opportunity to compete for a roster spot while learning behind Bryce Young and Kenny Pickett. Though he won’t start Thursday night’s game in Canton (that’ll be Pickett), he’s looking forward to his chance when it ultimately comes.
“I’m very excited,” King said this week when asked about making his preseason debut. “I haven’t played at this level yet. [So] just to go out there and showcase my ability—and to do it with the guys that we’ve been working hard [with], whether it’s training camp, OTAs, all that stuff, and just getting to know the guys—and to finally go out there in a game setting, it’s going to be pretty exciting.”
Other Panthers rookies to watch on Thursday night include first-round offensive tackle Monroe Freeling, center Sam Hecht and defensive back Zakee Wheatley.
Football is back! (again)
If you’ve been following along with our 2026 training camp coverage so far, you’ve probably seen me write out no less than a handful of times that football is “back.” Between a jam-packed week-plus of practices and the first episode of Hard Knocks with the Seahawks debuting this week, we’ve slowly but surely gotten our fix of the game ahead of the upcoming season.
But this? This is different.
Thursday night’s matchup between the Cardinals and Panthers is the first live NFL action we’ll see since Seattle defeated the Patriots in Super Bowl LX back in February. No red jerseys on quarterbacks. No controlled situations or early whistles by coaches. Tonight, we get to watch pure, unadulterated football.
That’s ultimately the No. 1 reason to be excited for this one.
