Haynes King’s Walk-Off Touchdown Run Lifts Panthers Past Cardinals in Hall of Fame Game
Haynes King took the ball on third-and-goal, faked a handoff, and ran straight through the hole nobody was supposed to leave open. Two seconds left. Five yards to go. He didn’t stop until he crossed the goal line, and the Carolina Panthers had themselves a 33-30 win over the Arizona Cardinals in the 2026 NFL Hall of Fame Game.
It happened Thursday night at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, and by the time King crossed the goal line, the building had gone from murmur to roar. This was still preseason. It didn’t feel like it.
King, an undrafted rookie out of Georgia Tech, finished the night 21 of 34 for 180 yards and two passing touchdowns, then added the game-winner on the ground. According to CBS Sports, he capped a 13-play, 65-yard drive with the walk-off score on the final play of the game, converting three third downs along the way to get there.
How the Final Drive Unfolded
Arizona had just taken a 30-27 lead. Cardinals quarterback Kedon Slovis found receiver Bryson Green for a touchdown with 1:55 left, and for a moment it looked like Carolina’s night was going to end in a loss. It didn’t. King marched the offense back down the field, mixing quick throws with scrambles, and put the Panthers in position for one final shot at the goal line.
He didn’t throw it. He tucked it, according to the Panthers’ own team site, after seeing everything covered downfield, and ran it in himself. Panthers wide receiver David Moore said afterward he knew what was coming the second King didn’t look toward his target. “When they called it, and he didn’t look, I knew he was going to run,” Moore said, per the team’s recap.
Head coach Dave Canales had a message waiting for his rookie quarterback as the two embraced on the sideline. “He just told me just stay humble, or he said at least pretend to stay,” King relayed afterward, according to the Panthers.
A Long Road to This Moment
King wasn’t drafted in April despite winning ACC Player of the Year and ACC Offensive Player of the Year honors during his final season at Georgia Tech in 2025. He signed with Carolina as an undrafted free agent shortly after the draft wrapped, a deal that included $250,000 guaranteed, according to NBC Sports‘ Pro Football Talk, which cited NFL Media’s Tom Pelissero.
The 25-year-old spent his first three college seasons at Texas A&M from 2020 to 2022, a stretch interrupted by injury, before transferring to Georgia Tech for 2023 through 2025. He entered Thursday’s game third on Carolina’s depth chart and only saw the field after Kenny Pickett, starting in place of Bryce Young, exited with 9:38 left in the first half and the Panthers trailing 14-7.
What followed was a coming-out party few saw coming. King connected with Ja’seem Reed on a 15-yard touchdown, found Anthony Tyus III for a short score, and then delivered the walk-off run that will headline his rookie highlight reel regardless of where his 2026 season goes from here.
By the Numbers
| Category | Haynes King (Panthers) | Carson Beck (Cardinals) |
|---|---|---|
| Passing | 21-of-34, 180 yards, 2 TD | 15-of-19, 188 yards, 1 TD |
| Rushing | 39 yards, 3 carries, 1 TD | — |
| Draft Status | Undrafted (2026) | Round 3 (Miami) |
Beck, a rookie third-round pick out of Miami, played the entire first half and part of the second before giving way to fourth-string quarterback Kedon Slovis, who went 9 of 10 for 106 yards and a touchdown in relief. Arizona actually outgained Carolina, 425 yards to 378, and it didn’t matter in the end.
A Ratings Bump for the Preseason Opener
The finish also gave NBC and Peacock a strong number to open the broadcast season. NBC Sports PR posted on X: “Back to Football…Big Numbers for Down-to-the-Wire Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on NBC and Peacock!” —
Back to Football…Big Numbers for Down-to-the-Wire Pro Football Hall of Fame Game on NBC and Peacock! pic.twitter.com/4nK30qaYaC
— NBC Sports PR (@NBCSportsPR) August 10, 2026
That post cited an average of 7.0 million viewers across NBC and Peacock, which would mark the best Hall of Fame Game audience since 2017, when Dallas beat Arizona 20-18 in front of an average 8.25 million viewers. That 2026 figure comes directly from NBC Sports’ own account and has not yet been independently verified by a second outlet at the time of publication — it should be treated as reported, not confirmed, until a ratings service or additional outlet publishes matching numbers. For context, last year’s Chargers-Lions Hall of Fame Game drew 6.9 million viewers, which Sports Illustrated reported was the best number since 2021.
The Bigger Picture
None of this decides Carolina’s regular-season quarterback room. Bryce Young remains the starter, and Pickett is still the presumed backup. But Canales now has film of a third-string rookie handling a two-minute drill under real pressure, in front of a national audience, and delivering. That’s not nothing heading into roster cuts.
The game also served as the opening act for Hall of Fame Weekend in Canton, honoring the 2026 induction class: Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Adam Vinatieri, Luke Kuechly, and Roger Craig. Fitzgerald and Kuechly, in particular, gave the matchup extra weight — the Cardinals and Panthers were essentially playing in front of two of their own franchise legends the weekend before those legends received their gold jackets.
The Hall of Fame Game dates back to 1962, when the very first edition ended in a 21-21 tie between the New York Giants and the then-St. Louis Cardinals. Sixty-four years later, nobody left Canton confused about who won.
