Jesse’s Players to Watch in the Hall of Fame Game
It is finally time, we will finally get to watch a taste of the 2026 season of the NFL with the upcoming Hall of Fame Game Thursday August 6th. The early preseason matchup will be the Arizona Cardinals playing the Carolina Panthers. Now I know it is only preseason, so nothing too exciting, but my favorite part of preseason is seeing players trying to earn a roster spot on the season. Of course if a player does well it doesn’t mean it translates to success in the regular season, but I love seeing players getting this opportunity. With this article I want to share some players who I will be on the watch to see if they are someone who could make a roster spot and what better game to do this for is the first preseason game. So let’s take a look!
Arizona Cardinals:
Carson Beck QB — This is an easy one to watch for. We all know Jacoby Brissett won’t be the long time starter, so let’s look at the 3rd round pick to see if he has the potential to maybe one day earn that spot. Beck is in his 1st year since playing with Miami and losing the National Championship to the Indiana Hoosiers. Beck has reportedly been doing better in camp since pads came on, but has struggled with passes over 10 yards downfield. However, camp reports said he has been more efficient in 1st down passing situations. I’m curious to see if he can stay away from the turnover bug, he has had interception problems his last two seasons in college.
Chase Bisontis OG — The second round pick is in a position battle at starting right guard, and if he does play it will be good to see how he looks in pass protection. Rumors say so far that Isaiah Adams is winning the battle as of now, but here is the opportunity for Bisontis to show everyone he can move to be a starter. Reports that track the Cardinals say that Bisontis has been working on footwork and dealing with the higher level of speed and strength in the NFL to adjust to.
Devin Duvernay/Ihmir Smith-Marsette WR/KR — Wide receiver spots that are competitive are always interesting, but here the Cardinals have 2 great returners as well! I’m looking to see of one of these can stand out on the returning side of the ball, I feel as if Duvernay is a lock to be a backup receiver and is a great returner and will most likely be the main returner, but if Smith-Marsette wants a spot on this team, I truly think he needs to beat out Duvernay in this battle. He does have 2 returns for touchdowns, but Duvernay has more experience and success than that.
Carolina Panthers:
Haynes King QB — Not really a player that will go far, most likely a practice squad player, but was he not entertaining in college!? I want to see if king has improved his pocket passing capabilities, at Georgia Tech he played like a Tim Tebow like player and was a great power runner. However, in the NFL, he won’t be able to do things like that. Some games, King was running over 15+ times, so he really needs to work on his pocket passing if he wants to be a quarterback in the NFL. Unless he wants to be more of a utility player like Taysom Hill, which is possible.
AJ Dillon RB — I thought Dillon could be a starter after he was great as a backup for the Green Bay Packers after his 2021–2022 season. He is a bigger back at 247 lbs from Boston College, and I truly think if he stays healthy, he can replace the role that Rico Dowdle played for the Panthers last season behind Chuba Hubbard. Dillon get to play much for the Eagles last season, but I truly feel that he can beat out Trevor Etienne and if Jonathan Brooks doesn’t stay healthy, he could be RB2 potentially.
* Won’t play* Monroe Freeling OT — Due to the injuries to the Panthers starting OT’s from last season, the 1st round pick is primed to be a starter and keep his spot! Taylor Morton will miss the beginning of the season most likely due to blood clots and Ikem Ekwonu ruptured a patella tendon in the playoffs last season and is most likely to miss the beginning of the season also. This was a big reason the Panthers chose to go OT in the first round and take Freeling, and this game will be a great time to see what he brings to the table.
Lee Hunter DT — The Texas Tech rookie had a lot of hype coming into the draft and out of the draft, he will most likely be used as a rotation piece for Bobby Brown III and Derrick Brown, but he could be a great tandem with Brown if he is the real deal that many people said he is. I won’t lie and say I’m skeptical, but as I always say, prove me wrong. The hype comes after coming out of Texas Tech last season with 10.5 tackles for loss, and has had great reviews coming from the Head Coach and teammates about disrupting the trenches. He is a big body that can help the Panthers stuff the run, which is a big deal when you have a guy like Bijan Robinson in the division.
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Author — Jesse Robertson(Benchwarmer Broadcasting Co-host)