The Carolina Panthers beat the Arizona Cardinals 33-30 in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, on Thursday, opening the National Football League preseason with a touchdown on the final play.
Undrafted rookie quarterback Haynes King ran in from five yards as the clock expired, having thrown for 180 yards and two touchdowns on his debut.
How was the game decided?
King finished 21 of 34 passing before scoring the winning touchdown himself. He played college football at Texas A&M and Georgia Tech and went undrafted.
Arizona led at the interval after Carson Beck, a third-round pick this year, guided them to 17 first-half points. Beck completed 15 of 19 passes for 188 yards and a touchdown, was sacked once, and finished with a passer rating of 125.4.
| Detail | Result |
|---|---|
| Final score | Carolina 33, Arizona 30 |
| Venue | Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, Canton |
| Winning score | Haynes King, 5-yard run as time expired |
| Cardinals quarterback | Carson Beck, 15-19, 188 yards |
Who won the 2026 Hall of Fame Game?
The Carolina Panthers beat the Arizona Cardinals 33-30 in the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame Game, played at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, on Thursday 6 August 2026. The match opened the National Football League preseason. Undrafted rookie quarterback Haynes King scored the winning touchdown with a five-yard run as the clock expired, finishing 21 of 34 passing for 180 yards and two touchdowns. Arizona’s rookie quarterback Carson Beck completed 15 of 19 passes for 188 yards. Both teams rested established starters, with Bryce Young and Jacoby Brissett not appearing. The fixture is an annual exhibition held during the Pro Football Hall of Fame enshrinement weekend and has been played since 1962. The 2026 induction class includes Larry Fitzgerald, Luke Kuechly, Drew Brees, Roger Craig and Adam Vinatieri.
What is the Hall of Fame Game?
It is an annual exhibition staged during the weekend of the Pro Football Hall of Fame induction ceremony, and has opened the NFL preseason since 1962. Results carry no competitive weight.
Established starters were rested. Neither Bryce Young for Carolina nor Jacoby Brissett for Arizona took the field, leaving the match to backups and rookies competing for roster places.
Why these two teams?
The pairing was chosen because two members of the 2026 induction class spent their entire careers with these franchises. Larry Fitzgerald played for Arizona and Luke Kuechly for Carolina. Both were recognised on the field before kick-off and are formally enshrined on Saturday alongside Drew Brees, Roger Craig and Adam Vinatieri.
Panthers players arrived at the stadium wearing Kuechly’s number 59 jersey. It was Carolina’s first appearance in Canton since 1995, when the franchise played its first NFL match against fellow expansion side Jacksonville. Arizona, appearing for a sixth time, took part in the inaugural fixture in 1962.
What it signals for the season
Preseason results are discarded, but the fixture is the first look at rosters. Both quarterbacks who started are rookies whose standing within their squads is unsettled, which is why the individual numbers drew more attention than the scoreline.
Carolina won the NFC South last season with an 8-9 record before losing in the wild card round. Arizona finished tied for the worst record in the league at 3-14 and begin this season under a first-year head coach, Mike LaFleur.
The regular season begins next month.
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Sources for this report
The Redline News Desk
The Redline News desk files and edits world reporting. Every story carries the sources it was built from, and corrections are published on the story itself.
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