Opinion: Revamp the HOF Game

Next weekend, there will be four high school football games held at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio. All four will be meaningful matchups with Ohio’s best teams squaring off with four teams from other states. I’ll be there scouting, and I’m totally excited for it.
It will be in stark contrast to the hot mess we saw last Thursday, and a mess we must endure every year. The annual NFL Hall of Fame Game is a bore – a big, fat zit on the NFL’s face in need of being popped. For a league that prides itself on being the “professional football league,” the game is a stain of stupidity.
It’s an insult to call it a “game.” It’s actually a glorified full-field scrimmage. It has no value outside of determining a few roster spots (side note: if you need four preseason games to determine your roster, you haven’t been paying attention). The third stringers were in by the second quarter. Worse: The third stringers of the Browns and Jets – two teams who didn’t make the playoffs last year, and who aren’t predicted to make it this year, at least by any rational thinker. Zack Wilson, a second overall pick of the draft, threw a grand total of five passes. No wonder he can’t beat a 40-year-old former game show host for the starting gig.
Okay, that was a little harsh, but you get the point.
Last year’s Hall of Fame game was marked by a 45-minute delay before the Jaguars and Raiders – two league powerhouses, right? Most fans turned it off. Of course, that wasn’t the league’s fault, but perhaps it just goes to prove my point. Perhaps the worst Hall of Fame Game in recent memory was in 2021 between Pittsburgh and Dallas: just three points were scored in the first half. There were no touchdowns until the fourth quarter.
My point is, the Hall of Fame game as it stands right now is a sincere disservice to the occasion. It’s not entertaining or meaningful. It’s not good for the teams involved, as they have to start camp earlier than everyone else. It’s not good for the fans who have to pay at least a couple hundred bucks to get a seat. It’s not good from an entertainment perspective as well. It’s even worse for the Hall of Famers, too, who have to endure three hours of bad football. Congrats! You’re in the NFL Hall of Fame! Enjoy this totally meaningless scrimmage!
At least they get an interview with a cute NBC reporter.
The NFL needs to revamp the game completely. I have a simple solution: make it an actual game that actually counts. Move the induction ceremonies to the regular season. Instead of playing a game in Mexico, play a game in Canton. Make it a marquee matchup.
Or stick some hungry Ohio high school teams out there who will fight to the death.
Either way, make it better.