2026 NFL Hall of Fame Game Odds, Picks: How to Bet Around Carson Beck, Kenny Pickett?

The NFL officially starts its final phase before the launch of the 2026 season with Thursday night’s Hall of Fame Game, which pits the Carolina Panthers and Arizona Cardinals.

With both squads having that extra preseason game to work with, both head coaches are expected to play it safe with their starters and key rookies Thursday. That particularly holds true at quarterback, where Bryce Young and Jacoby Brissett will both get the night off and give way to Kenny Pickett and Carson Beck, respectively.

The launch of preseason also means NFL betting is officially back, and as such, we have some team and game props whose outcomes Pickett and Beck should have a notable hand in influencing. Since it is an exhibition game, we do not recommend traditional betting this game – rather finding creative ways to wager around the two players we know will be playing in Beck and Pickett.

Thursday’s Hall of Fame Game Odds

Thursday’s Hall of Fame Game Props 

• Carolina Panthers 1st To Score – No (-240)
• Race to 10 Points- Arizona Cardinals (+104)
• Arizona Cardinals 2+ Passing TDs (+220)
• Arizona Cardinals 1st To Score- Yes (+220)

Kenny Pickett (CAR)

Pickett has had a fairly precipitous fall from NFL grace relative to expectations he entered the league with as a 20th overall pick of the Steelers in the 2022 NFL Draft. After a rocky first two seasons in Pittsburgh, Pickett has gone the backup route in the last pair of campaigns, appearing in 11 games overall between one-season stints with the Eagles and Raiders.

Pickett is projected to fill the same No. 2 role this season behind Young, but with all the Panthers’ front-line starters slated to sit out against Arizona, the former will draw the start. Pickett last took a preseason snap in 2024, when he completed 31 of 44 passes for 214 yards with a touchdown and no interceptions over three games.

One of the main knocks on Pickett has been arm strength and his corresponding tendencies to keep most of his throws in the short and medium passing windows. The Pitt product has averaged just 6.2 yards per attempt in his career (800 regular-season pass attempts), and he was even more conservative than that in his most recent preseason action in 2024 while averaging only 4.9 yards per throw. As such, of the available team props that come into play, betting No on the Panthers being the first team to score seems prudent.

Best Bet: Carolina Panthers 1st To Score – No (-240)

Carson Beck (ARI)

Beck has been the talk of Cardinals camp so far, as the rookie third-round pick has reportedly looked much more seasoned than his lack of NFL experience would suggest is possible. That’s certainly due in no small part to Beck’s significant college experience, which included five seasons, the last three as a starter at Georgia and the University of Miami. Beck hasn’t just shined on high-percentage throws, either, as he hit a couple of particularly impressive deep passes Monday.

Arizona has Jacoby Brissett entrenched as the starter and another veteran aiming to secure the No. 2 role in Gardner Minshew. However, it wouldn’t be completely out of the realm of possibility for rookie head coach Mike LaFleur to make a bold decision at the end of preseason and hang on to Beck over Minshew ahead of a season where the Cardinals aren’t expected to contend. However, for such a move to have a chance of happening, the coaching staff will undoubtedly need to get an extended look at Beck and what he brings to the table.

Consequently, we have a trio of Cardinals props we can consider, and what makes them all the more appealing is they’re all at plus money. Beck looks like he’s clicking on all cylinders, and although facing an opponent instead of your own team’s defense always has the chance to produce unexpected results, that seems less likely against a Panthers unit that figures to be playing second- and third-stringers right from the onset of the game.

Assuming Beck gets at least the first half to work with — which is certainly a possibility, considering second-year signal-caller Kedon Slovis is the only other quarterback scheduled to see time for Arizona — the Cards could very well be the first team to score, the first to 10 points and potentially already collect two touchdown passes from Beck himself.

Furthering the chances of Beck’s success is the fact the Cardinals have a very deep pass-catching corps with more experience than the average preseason gameday roster, considering the likes of Devin Duvernay, Simi Fehoko, Jalen Brooks, Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Elijah Higgins, Teagan Quitoriano and Kenny Yeboah have seen their fair share of regular-season time in their respective careers.

Best Bet: Arizona Cardinals Over 1.5 Passing TDs (+220)
Best Bet: Race to 10 Points- Arizona Cardinals (+104)

Photo Credit: REUTERS