Carolina Panthers QBs Kenny Pickett and Haynes King get big chance to prove themselves in Thursday’s Hall of Fame Game
With starting quarterback Bryce Young sitting out, Thursday’s preseason opener will be a big opportunity for Carolina Panthers quarterbacks Kenny Pickett and Haynes King to get value game reps under their belt.
Carolina Panthers backup quarterback Kenny Pickett will start Thursday night against the Arizona Cardinals in the Hall of Fame Game, a significant opportunity for the former first-round pick to earn some good graces around the league.
Thursday’s game will be a standalone affair between the Panthers and Cardinals, with the rest of the NFL’s preseason slate technically set to begin next week. That means all 30 of the other teams in the league will be glued to what happens on the field Thursday night.
It’ll be a big opportunity for Pickett, who believes he has what it takes to be one of the 32 starting quarterbacks. It’s also a big opportunity for undrafted rookie quarterback Haynes King to prove 31 other teams wrong for not taking a chance on him.
Kenny Pickett looking to prove himself as a starting-caliber quarterback again
When the Panthers signed Pickett to a one-year deal this offseason, the expectation was never that he would start for this team. He was more of a player head coach Dave Canales liked coming out of the draft that he did extensive research on and always wanted to work with. That led to Carolina bringing him in as a younger backup option.
This preseason, though, serves as a stepping stone for Pickett. It’s a chance to reset with a welcoming team that provided him an opportunity to showcase himself. Pickett believes he’s one of the top 32 starting quarterbacks in the NFL, and he’ll get a chance to prove it starting Thursday night.
While he’s not the Panthers’ QB1, running an offense in a live game setting with multiple years of experience under his belt will give him the opportunity to show other teams around the league what he can still do as a starting-caliber quarterback. Although it’s not something he’s primarily focused on going into this game.
“If you think about the exterior factors, you may not go out there and play as well as you need to,” Pickett said after practice Tuesday. “Just all of the hard work that we’re putting in in practice here, you want to see it come to life on game day.”
Haynes King has a lot to prove as well after being passed on by all 32 teams in the 2026 NFL Draft
In that same vein, this is also a massive opportunity for King, a talented player the Panthers were high on throughout the draft process but waited until after the 2026 NFL Draft to bring him in. King had the opportunity to choose where he wanted to go as a UDFA, but the familiarity made sense in Carolina because of the work they put in scouting him. That being said, King isn’t guaranteed anything after landing Carolina being behind Young and Pickett. He still has plenty to prove beginning Thursday.
“It’s very important,” King explained. “It’s not just 53, all of the teams get to watch this film, it’s almost like a cool little tryout for every team. Whatever you put on film, it’s going to be there forever. I feel like it’ll be fun, but also at the end of the day, it’s important for me and what ever is for me in the future.”
King was a stud dual-threat quarterback at Georgia Tech with a big arm and fearless leadership on the field for the Yellow Jackets. That’s something Carolina really wanted to add to its quarterback room. We’ve seen a little bit of it throughout training camp, and King got more opportunities after the retirement of veteran Will Grier a couple weeks before camp, opening the door for him to assume the QB3 role.
As a dual-threat quarterback with the ability he has as a runner and the physicality he plays with, he’s going to be an exciting player in the preseason. Running quarterbacks historically have fared well in preseason games against inexperienced defensive players still trying to grasp new systems. However, King wants to prove what he can do inside the pocket as well at the next level.
“I just want the quarterback to move the chains and move the team. Whatever that looks like, I’m good with it,” Canales said when asked if he’d rather see King do more with his arm than legs on Thursday. “If he takes off and runs five times in a row and we’re in the red zone knocking on the door, that’s a great drive. If he goes five-for-five and completes the ball, finds an explosive and flips the field, I’m good with that too. The fact that Haynes can do that is a great thing.”
For an undrafted rookie, putting a strong showing on tape will be even more important compared to Pickett, who has years of NFL experience across different schemes. Based on the early returns, everyone in Carolina is eager and excited to see what King can showcase on the field this preseason.
“You just know when a guy has it, and I think he does,” Pickett said of King. “He works really hard. Understands each route concept and how he can get open and what his job is. He just goes out and he executes at a really high level.”
