Tag: Hall of Fame Game

How to watch four Wisconsin products in 2024 NFL Hall of Fame Game

How to watch four Wisconsin products in 2024 NFL Hall of Fame Game

The NFL returns tonight (Thursday, Aug. 1), at least in some capacity. The 2024 NFL Hall of Fame Game is on the schedule, otherwise known as the preseason’s preseason.

The Houston Texans and Chicago Bears will square off in this edition of the event while the 2024 Hall of Fame class of Dwight Freeney, Devin Hester, Andre Johnson, Julius Peppers and Patrick Willis receive their gold jackets.

Related: Every former Wisconsin Badger currently on an NFL roster entering 2024 training camp

The Bears and Texans starters are unlikely to approach the field during the contest. So while four former Wisconsin Badgers will technically be in action, several of them may not be in uniform.

Those players are Bears linebackers T.J. Edwards and Jack Sanborn, and Texans wide receiver Quintez Cephus and running back Dare Ogunbowale.

For those longing for football regardless of the quality of play, or just interested in watching Wisconsin products in action, here is how to watch Thursday’s game

  • Date: Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024
  • Time: 8 p.m. ET, 7 p.m. CT
  • TV Channel: ESPN, ABC

Badgers fans should expect to see some snaps for Cephus as he battles to make the Texans’ roster after missing the 2023 season due to a gambling-related suspension.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

Texans not expected to play C.J. Stroud, starters in Hall of Fame Game against Bears

The Houston Texans are not expected to play C.J. Stroud or any of the starters on Thursday night in the Hall of Fame Game.

While the Houston Texans will take the field on Thursday in the annual Hall of Fame Game, C.J. Stroud will not be one of the players to see action. 

Texans coach DeMeco Ryans confirmed during an interview on SportsRadio 610 Wednesday morning that neither Stroud nor the rest of Houston’s starters will play against the Chicago Bears on Thursday.

“When I look at the decision-making process of who’s playing, first thing’s first is we have an extra [preseason] game,” Ryans told Texans’ play-by-play announcer Mark Vandermeer. “So, [we] don’t want any of our starters out there playing.

“Our starters will not be out there playing.”

Chicago’s Matt Eberflus announced Tuesday following practice that the Bears would also rest their starters, including 024 No. 1 overall pick and former Heisman winner Caleb Williams. Tyson Bagnet was named the Bears’ starter in Canton and hopes to secure a spot on the roster. 

Ryans did not specify if former third-round pick Davis Mills would start, but he’s been getting almost all the reps with the second-team offense. 

“We want this time to be a really good evaluation time of our younger guys, so our second and third groups, you’ll see those guys out getting most of the reps,” Ryans said. 

Stroud, along with Pro Bowl receiver Stefon Diggs and All-Pro defensive end Danielle Hunter, honestly don’t need to see the field at any point this preseason. Sure, it would be nice for fans to catch a glimpse of the newcomers in action, but Houston’s top importance is its quality of depth. 

The Texans could elect to at least let the starters see a drive or two next week when they travel to Pittsburgh to take on the Steelers, though it’s uncommon for teams to play starters in the first preseason game. 

Fans should still be pumped to see football back on their television screens, even without Stroud seeing the field. Dameon Pierce has been a standout in practice and now fans can watch him build off his success against a legitimate opponent. 

The same goes for John Metchie, who continues to impress the coaching staff while splitting reps between the first and second-team offense. On defense, former top-10 pick Jeff Okudah is looking to secure his spot on the roster as the No. 3 corner behind Kamari Lassiter and Derek Stingley Jr. 

The Texans will kick off against the Bears at 7 p.m. CT. Two days later, Texans legend Andre Johnson will be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, becoming the first player in franchise history to earn the accolade.  

Why Caleb Williams won’t make his Bears debut during the Hall of Fame Game

We’ll have to wait a little longer to see Caleb Williams play for the Bears.

Caleb Williams will eventually throw a beautiful pass in game action for the Chicago Bears, and it will probably be glorious. We’ll likely even get to see it from the Hard Knocks angle. But for anyone hoping to see the hyped No. 1 overall pick in action during Chicago’s Hall of Fame Game against the Houston Texans on Thursday night, they’re going to be sorely disappointed.

After Tuesday’s Bears’ training camp practice, head coach Matt Eberflus revealed that Chicago’s starters will not play a single snap in its first preseason game.

Why? The Bears think they’ve already been getting in good work with their extra camp time and are satisfied with where they stand in the late summer.

The Bears’ rationale makes sense.

Being slotted in the Hall of Fame Game meant the Bears reported over a week earlier to training camp than many NFL teams. It gave them more quality practice time together while letting them throw more things at a Williams at a comfortable pace as they’ve developed him.

As a result, throwing Williams or any key starters into vanilla preseason action for maybe a possession or two feels fruitless at this stage. It provides no real benefit for a rookie quarterback and team that probably rightfully thinks they’re ahead of the curve on 2024 season prep. It’s good forward-thinking and puts Williams in an even better place ahead of his likely preseason debut on Saturday, August 10, against the Buffalo Bills.

And for anyone who still thinks Williams should be exposed to Hall of Fame Game action. If his rookie season’s success was going to be determined by extremely short preseason action against a defense also playing backups, he never had a chance in the first place.

Broncos won’t play in NFL’s Hall of Fame Game this summer

Broncos great Randy Gradishar will be enshrined in Canton this summer, but the Broncos won’t play in the Hall of Fame Game.

The Denver Broncos will have one former player enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame this summer, but the team won’t be featured in the league’s annual Hall of Fame Game.

The Chicago Bears will face the Houston Texans in the the first game of the preseason on Thursday, Aug. 1 in Canton, Ohio.

The Bears have three players — return specialist Devin Hester, defensive lineman Steve McMichael and pass rusher Julius Peppers — set to be enshrined. The Texans, meanwhile, have wide receiver Andre Johnson as the franchise’s first-ever Hall of Famer.

After the Hall of Fame Game, the 2024 class will be enshrined on Saturday, Aug. 3. Broncos linebacker Randy Gradishar was elected to this year’s class as a senior candidate.

Denver played the Atlanta Falcons in the Hall of Fame Game in 2019, kicking off the preseason with a 14-10 win. This year, the Broncos will have a set of three preseason games beginning the week of Aug. 5.

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Bears to play Texans in Hall of Fame Game

The Bears will kick off the preseason against the Texans in the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday, Aug. 1.

The Chicago Bears will kick off the preseason against the Houston Texans in the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday, Aug. 1 at 7 p.m. CT in Canton, Ohio.

It doesn’t really come as a surprise considering Chicago has three players being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year — return specialist Devin Hester, defensive tackle Steve McMichael and defensive end Julius Peppers, who will be enshrined on Saturday, Aug. 3.

Houston is represented by wide receiver Andre Johnson, who’s also being inducted alongside those three. Johnson is the first Texans player to be elected to the Hall of Fame.

The rest of the 2024 class includes Dwight Freeney, Randy Gradishar and Patrick Willis.

The Bears and Texans will also face each other during the regular season, so this is the first of two meetings. This could mark Caleb Williams’ Chicago debut (although starters typically don’t play in the Hall of Fame Game).

This will be the first of four preseason games for the Bears.

A former Badger excelled during Thursday’s Hall of Fame Game

A former Wisconsin C had a good night at the Hall of Fame Game

Football is back on our televisions. It came Thursday night in the form of the NFL Hall of Fame Game, where the Browns defeated the Jets 21-16.

The story revolving around the contest is never about the football itself. The 2023 Hall of Fame class was celebrated, including Wisconsin legend Joe Thomas, while the cameras were mostly fixated on new Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

For the college football superfans like myself, the contest also presents an opportunity to see former college stars try to make a name for themselves at the next level. Some of those players Thursday included former UCLA quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson, former Oregon and USC running back Travis Dye and former Wisconsin center Joe Tippmann.

The latter had a big night in his first NFL preseason start. ProFootballFocus graded 21 pass block snaps which included zero pressures allowed and a 82.9 Pass Block Grade.

The Jets second-round pick is projected to start at center in Rodgers’ first year in New York. Following the lead of former Cowboys center Travis Frederick and current Cowboys center Tyler Biadasz, Tippmann figures to be a tremendous NFL lineman for some time.

WATCH: DeMarcus Ware sings national anthem before Hall of Fame Game

DeMarcus Ware sang the national anthem before the Hall of Fame Game on Thursday. Here’s how NFL fans reacted on Twitter.

DeMarcus Ware sang the national anthem before the Hall of Fame Game between the New York Jets and Cleveland Browns to kick off NFL preseason in Canton, Ohio on Thursday evening.

Ware, 41, will be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame as a member of the 2023 class on Saturday. He totaled 138.5 sacks during his 12-year career from 2005-2016.

Ware spent the first nine seasons of his career with the Dallas Cowboys, recording a franchise-record 117 sacks in 141 games. He then joined the Denver Broncos as a free agent in 2014, teaming up with Von Miller to create arguably the best pass-rushing duo in the NFL at the time.

Ware played the final three years of his career with the Broncos, totaling 21.5 sacks in 33 games. He retired from football after the 2016 season and Ware now ranks ninth on the NFL’s all-time sack list (138.5).

Many fans will remember Ware as a Cowboy, but he was a key member of Denver’s defense that led the team to a 24-10 victory over the Carolina Panthers in Super Bowl 50 following the 2015 season.

Ware’s time with the Broncos might have been short, but his Super Bowl ring is an important part of the pass rusher’s Hall of Fame resume.

Here’s a sampling of how Twitter reacted to Ware’s performance on Thursday.

Jets drop Hall of Fame Game to Browns, 21-16; Wilson and Becton perform well

Jets drop Hall of Fame Game to Browns, 21-16; Wilson and Becton perform well

The New York Jets fell to the Cleveland Browns in the Hall of Fame Game, 21-16, on Thursday night in Canton, Ohio.

With most of the likely starters sitting this one out, numerous key backups had a chance to get much-needed reps. Or in the case of quarterback Zach Wilson, it was a chance to prove he has learned from his mistakes in 2022.

Wilson played a quarter and went 3-for-5 for 65 yards, including a 57-yard toss to wide receiver Malik Taylor, a very nice deep throw that landed right on the mark, a play head coach Robert Saleh said was suggested by Aaron Rodgers. Wilson started taking what the defense gave him, something he severely struggled with last season. This was against mostly backups for the Browns, but the progress has been evident for the former No. 2 overall pick.

The other top player most had their eyes on Thursday was offensive tackle Mekhi Becton. He was expected to play 20 to 25 snaps. He wound up playing only seven offensive snaps plus a few snaps on special teams. But in his limited time, Becton played well. He looked very strong in both run blocking for Israel Abanikanda — who had a 10-yard touchdown run and finished with 27 yards on nine carries — and pass protection for Wilson.

The Jets seem to be making Becton earn a spot, hence him running with the second team in camp and starting on Thursday. Saleh said the limited snap count was more about building up Becton’s confidence that his knee can hold up but that Becton “felt it a little bit.” There’s no setback for Becton, however, and that is the most important piece here. Just getting Becton healthy after his first game action since Week 1 of the 2021 season is a confidence booster for both Becton and the team.

Tim Boyle played the second and third quarters at QB for the Jets and went 6-for-11 for 61 yards. Chris Streveler finished out the game — including waiting out a delay after the lights in the stadium went out — and was 1-of-7 for nine yards.

Elsewhere on the ground, rookie Travis Dye ran nine times for 12 yards and Damarea Crockett had seven yards on four carries.

Taylor’s 57 yards receiving were a game high. Four other Jets had double digits: Alex Erickson (1-19), EJ Jenkins (2-18), Jason Brownlee (2-17) and Kenny Yeboah (2-13). Zack Kuntz and Abanikanda each had a catch for six and five yards, respectively.

On defense, undrafted rookie Trey Dean led the way with seven tackles and sixth-round rookie Zaire Barnes had five. Will McDonald made some very nice spin moves and showed the speed and flashes that made him the 15th overall pick. Micheal Clemons and Bryce Hall (who recorded a sack) also showed they will be key parts of the rotation.

Not that preseason records mean much, but Thursday was the first preseason loss for Saleh, who is entering his third year as Jets coach. Saleh was 5-0-1 in the preseason entering Thursday — the Jets and Eagles played to a 31-31 tie in 2021.

The Jets return to the practice field Saturday and will have a pair of open practices to the public Saturday and Sunday before a day off Monday. They’ll practice at home Tuesday and then head to Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, for a pair of joint practices with the Carolina Panthers Wednesday and Thursday before their preseason game next Saturday, Aug. 12 at 4 p.m.

Twitter reacts to Browns win over the Jets in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game

The return of football is finally here and the fans in Cleveland were alive

The New York Jets and the Cleveland Browns faced off in the Pro Hall of Fame game on Thursday as the long wait for the return of football is finally over. None of the starters played for either team but it was still nice to see the depth players and rookies take the field to battle for roster spots and playing time.

In the end, the Browns beat the Jets by a final score of 21-16 but there was plenty to be excited about. Dorian Thompson-Robinson caught the attention of plenty with his live arm, enthusiasm, and ability to make plays with his legs. Let’s take a look at how fans reacted to this game on social media.

WATCH: Cowboys great DeMarcus Ware sings national anthem at Hall of Fame Game

From @ToddBrock24f7: He’ll be inducted this weekend, but the former Cowboy and Bronco said performing the pregame song would be the bigger strain on his nerves.

Hall of Fame Week is a wild jumble of emotions for the enshrinees each year. But for longtime Cowboys defensive superstar DeMarcus Ware, the hardest part is already over.

The franchise’s all-time sacks leader performed the national anthem before a packed house and a national television audience Thursday evening from Canton, Ohio.

The linebacker, a nine-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion who had played in his share of huge games, had previously confessed that the honor of singing the “Star-Spangled Banner” prior to kickoff of the Hall of Fame Game between the Browns and Jets had him more nervous than he had ever been in his 41 years.

“You can never be ready for that,” Ware said per the Dallas Morning News. “There’s ways you can prepare for it and have ample amount of vocal lessons. But when you get up there and when the crowd goes silent, it’s your turn to get up there and sing to the whole United States of America on what it stands for. And that is huge.”

The Alabama native grew up in a musical family; his mother and uncle were singers, and Ware himself was the vocalist in a band in high school.

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Technically speaking, Ware’s rendition of the anthem was less than pitch-perfect, as many on social media were quick to point out.

But the moment had extra special meaning for the former Cowboy and Bronco who will take his place among the football immortals on Saturday. Ware said the song would be dedicated to the late Demaryius Thomas, his teammate who passed away in 2021. Ware and the wide receiver used to sing the anthem together on the Denver sideline prior to games.

And to kick off a football weekend where emotions tend to supersede the actual Xs and Os of the preseason, Ware’s heartfelt anthem may have gotten things off on just the right note.

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