The 2016 NFL Preseason was supposed to kick off Sunday with the Hall of Fame game, but an embarrassing cancellation ruined those plans.
Next: Every NFL Team's Best Draft Pick Of All-Time
Each year, the Pro Football Hall of Fame puts on quite a show during their Hall of Fame festivities. Honoring the legends of the game, the Hall of Fame finishes off their weekend with the Hall of Fame Game, signaling the start of the 2016 NFL Preseason.
This year, those plans went out the window when horrible field conditions forced the game to be cancelled. The field was brand new, and it had been approved when it was first installed. However, the paint was congealed, and hardened at midfield and in the end zone. Workers tried to fix the situation, but to no avail. The outcome was a very embarrassing situation for the NFL.
Despite the folly on Sunday, the NFL has no plans to move the Hall of Fame game from Canton, Ohio. Speaking with the Canton Repository, league spokesman Brian McCarthy said there has been no discussion to move the game.
“We are spending time with the Hall, and turf suppliers to determine what happened to make sure what happened in Canton doesn’t occur in other games,” McCarthy said. “The NFL has a tremendous amount of respect for (Hall of Fame president) David Baker and the Hall of Fame and the entire community in Canton. Obviously, there were disappointed fans who were there and we were disappointed for the people of Canton who are tremendous hosts. We respect all the hard work that goes into hosting this weekend.”
President Baker told ESPN that those who bought tickets from the Hall of Fame will be refunded, with the refunds expected to cost the Hall of Fame $4 million dollars. However, those who bought tickets through a secondary source will not.
The game was slated to be the Green Bay Packers against the Indianapolis Colts, two teams who had a vested interest in the people inducted in the Hall of Fame the night before. Quarterback Brett Favre played most of his career in Green Bay, and former Head Coach Tony Dungy led the Colts to a Super Bowl win.
Add us as a preferred source on Google