NFL Preseason Kicks Off Tonight as Cardinals Host Panthers in Hall of Fame Game From Canton Ohio This Week

CANTON, Ohio — The NFL's 107th season officially begins Thursday night, with the Arizona Cardinals hosting the Carolina Panthers in the annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, an exhibition contest that traditionally kicks off the league's preseason schedule while honoring the newest class of enshrinees inside the sport's most hallowed hall.

Kickoff at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium is set for 8 p.m. Eastern time, with national coverage beginning an hour earlier on NBC and Peacock as part of Football Night in America, featuring play-by-play announcer Mike Tirico, analyst Cris Collinsworth and sideline reporter Melissa Stark. The broadcast will also be available to stream on NFL+ and Fubo.

A Fitting Matchup for the Hall of Fame Class

This year's pairing was no accident. The Hall of Fame's 2026 induction class includes Arizona wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald and Carolina linebacker Luke Kuechly, both of whom spent their entire NFL careers with the franchises they'll watch face off Thursday night. Rounding out the Class of 2026 are quarterback Drew Brees, kicker Adam Vinatieri and running back Roger Craig, all of whom will be recognized on the field during pregame ceremonies before their formal enshrinement Saturday.

Jim Porter, president and CEO of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, addressed the significance of the matchup in a statement, saying both teams are eager to open their season in Canton and to celebrate members of the Class of 2026 who meant so much to their organizations.

A Long Wait for Carolina, a Familiar Return for Arizona

Thursday's game marks a notable milestone for the Panthers, who are making just their second appearance in the Hall of Fame Game and their first since the franchise's inaugural 1995 expansion season, when Carolina defeated fellow first-year franchise Jacksonville by a score of 20-14 in the same stadium.

Arizona, meanwhile, is making its sixth trip to Canton for the exhibition and its first appearance since 2017. The Cardinals franchise, then based in St. Louis, holds the distinction of having participated in the very first Hall of Fame Game back in 1962, more than a year before the museum itself officially opened to the public, playing to a 21-21 tie against the New York Giants in one of only two ties in the event's history.

Backups Take Center Stage

As is customary for the Hall of Fame Game, both teams are expected to rest the majority of their established starters, giving backups and roster hopefuls an extended look at live game action. Carolina head coach Dave Canales confirmed earlier in the week that starting quarterback Bryce Young would not play, telling reporters that while some competitive battles for starting jobs would be on display, most of the players expected to open the regular season would not appear in Thursday's contest.

Veteran Kenny Pickett, who signed with the Panthers this offseason to serve as the team's primary backup quarterback, will start under center for Carolina, with rookie Haynes King expected to see extended playing time as the game progresses. On the Arizona sideline, with starting quarterback Jacoby Brissett held out, the Cardinals will turn to Carson Beck to lead the offense in front of the home crowd.

New Leadership on Both Sidelines

Thursday's game also marks the coaching debut of Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur, hired this past February to replace Jonathan Gannon. LaFleur's arrival adds an interesting family footnote to the broader NFL coaching landscape: with his brother Matt LaFleur entering his eighth season as head coach of the Green Bay Packers, the LaFleurs become just the second pair of siblings currently serving as NFL head coaches, joining John Harbaugh of the New York Giants and Jim Harbaugh of the Los Angeles Chargers.

Arizona enters the preseason opener designated as the home team, led on offense by tight end Trey McBride, whose 126 receptions in 2025 set an NFL single-season record for the position, and on defense by safety Budda Baker, an eight-time Pro Bowl selection coming off another standout campaign. Carolina, meanwhile, arrives in Canton fresh off an NFC South division title in 2025, a season in which quarterback Bryce Young helped foster wide receiver Tetairoa McMillan's Associated Press NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign.

A Preview of the Season Ahead

The two teams met once during the 2025 regular season, in a Week 2 matchup at State Farm Stadium in Arizona, where the Cardinals built a 27-3 lead and survived a late Carolina rally to escape with a 27-22 victory. While Thursday's exhibition carries no bearing on the 2026 standings, it offers both coaching staffs a valuable first look at their expanded 90-man rosters as position battles begin to take shape ahead of final roster cuts later in the preseason.

Setting the Stage for Enshrinement Weekend

Beyond the football itself, Thursday's game serves as the opening act of a broader Hall of Fame Enshrinement Festival weekend in Canton. Fitzgerald, Kuechly, Brees, Craig and Vinatieri will each receive their Gold Jackets during a ceremony downtown the evening following the game, before being formally enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, Aug. 8, inside the same stadium where Thursday's exhibition will be played.

With Thursday's contest marking the unofficial start of the 2026 NFL season, the league's full slate of Week 1 preseason games will resume across the rest of the league next week, as all 32 teams begin working through their exhibition schedules ahead of final roster decisions. For the Cardinals and Panthers, Thursday's game offers an early measuring stick for two franchises with divergent recent trajectories, Arizona rebuilding under new leadership and Carolina looking to build on last season's divisional title, as both teams begin the long road toward the start of the regular season next month.