The NFL will officially return on Thursday with the annual Hall of Fame Game in Canton, OH. This year’s edition of the preseason’s first game will take place between the Arizona Cardinals and Carolina Panthers.
The Cardinals announced on Tuesday that rookie quarterback Carson Beck out of the University of Miami will get the starting nod, with veteran and presumed regular-season starter Jacoby Brissett getting some rest.
Beck had “no clue” that he’d be starting on Thursday, per Pro Football Talk.
“I thought I was going to play, but I had no expectations,” the young quarterback said on Tuesday. “Obviously our schedule has been crazy right now. But I’m looking forward to it.”
New Cardinals head coach Mike LaFleur has not publicly discussed how he’ll split up playing time on Thursday, but the expectation is for Brett and fellow veteran Gardner Minshew III to sit out the entire game, with fourth-stringer Kedon Slovis being an option to see the field with Beck.
Don’t expect Beck to be nervous in his first professional action.
“It’s a game at the end of the day,” he said. “Not really any nerves. More excitement than anything.”
Offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett commended the young quarterback’s poise.
“That’s one of the best things about him, all of his experience,” Hackett said. “His age, his understanding that things are going to go good, [and] they are going to go bad. You can never get too excited; you can never get too frustrated.”
About Qwame Skinner
Qwame Skinner has loved both writing and sports his entire life. In addition to his sports coverage at Comeback Media, Qwame writes novels, and his debut; The First Casualty, an adult fantasy, is out now.