The official kickoff to the NFL preseason comes in the Hall of Fame Game every year and the NFL has revealed the two teams that will be facing each other to start the 2023 season.
The league announced on Tuesday that the Browns and Jets will be traveling to Canton, Ohio, for the game. It won't be surprising at all if it ends up feeling like a home game for the Browns and that's because Canton is just a one-hour drive from Cleveland.
The game will be played on Thursday, Aug. 3 and will kick off at 8 p.m. ET.
This will mark the sixth time that the Browns have been tabbed for the Hall of Fame Game, but they haven't been invited to Canton since 1999 when they beat the Cowboys 20-17. (The Browns also played in the game in 1963, 1967, 1981 and 1990).
As for the Jets, this will be just their third appearance. Their only other trips to Canton came in 1977 and 1992.
The Hall of Fame Game always features two teams that have ties to that year's Hall of Fame class and this year is no different. The Browns were selected for the game because Joe Thomas is being inducted this year, while the Jets were selected because Joe Klecko and Darrelle Revis are both being enshrined that weekend (The actual enshrinement ceremony will be taking place on Saturday, Aug. 5).
Besides Revis, Klecko and Thomas, the other members of this year's Hall of Fame class are Ronde Barber, Don Coryell, Chuck Howley, Ken Riley, Zach Thomas and DeMarcus Ware.
Although we know when the Hall of Fame Game will be played, we're going to have to wait a few months until we know the times and dates of any other games. The 2023 regular-season schedule isn't expected to drop until May.
