The NFL‘s annual Pro Football Hall of Fame Game is essentially nothing more than a meaningless preseason game. But as it’s typically the first preseason game of the new campaign, signaling the return of football, and is held adjacent to the Hall of Fame building in Canton, Ohio, the week of induction ceremonies, it tends to get a touch more attention than others.

Since the inaugural edition in 1962, the game has been held every year except for four. Seemingly for no particular reason, it wasn’t played in 1966. The scheduled meeting between the St. Louis Rams and Chicago Bears in 2011 was canceled due to the NFL lockout.

Poor field conditions in 2016 nixed the battle between the Green Bay Packers and Indianapolis Colts. And COVID-19 halted the 2020 matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Pittsburgh Steelers, who squared off a year later.

So that means 56 editions of the game have taken place over the last six decades, which obviously means 112 different teams have taken the field in Canton. So how have those 112 teams fared in the seasons they appeared in the Hall of Fame Game?

No team to appear in the Hall of Fame Game has ever won a Super Bowl

Of the 112 teams to appear in the Hall of Fame Game, not a single one has gone on to win the Super Bowl. And perhaps you think there’s a technicality here as the Super Bowl wasn’t played until after the 1966 season. But that’s not the case.

Of the eight teams to appear in the game from 1962 to 1965, only two made the postseason, the 1962 New York Giants and the 1964 Baltimore Colts. And both lost the NFL Championship. The much more shocking stat is that of the 104 teams to play the Hall of Fame Game in the Super Bowl era, only three have reached the season finale.

And once again, all three lost, those being the 1988 Cincinnati Bengals, the 1994 San Diego Chargers, and the 2001 St. Louis Rams. The San Francisco 49ers thwarted the first two, while Tom Brady’s New England Patriots upset “The Greatest Show on Turf.”

More than half the teams to play in Canton miss the NFL Playoffs

A Canton tradition that stretches back 60 years, the Hall of Fame Game will signify the start of the 2022 NFL season tonight. pic.twitter.com/EYNM38o60k

— Pro Football Hall of Fame (@ProFootballHOF) August 4, 2022

So if you can’t win a Super Bowl by playing in the Hall of Fame Game, how far can you get? Well, despite the fact that 62.5% (70 of 112) of teams to play in Canton finish with a .500 record or better in the regular season, only 42.9% (48 of 112) have made the NFL Playoffs.

Of those 48, 13 have fizzled out in the Wild Card Round, 25 have been knocked out in the Divisional Round, and five have lost their conference championship game. And, of course, there are the five teams mentioned above who lost the NFL Championship Game or the Super Bowl.

Now, there’s obviously no direct correlation between the Hall of Fame Game and the Super Bowl, as one is a meaningless exhibition in which most stars don’t play while the other is the biggest event in American sports.

But aren’t numbers fun?

How every team to play the Hall of Fame Game fared that season

Here’s a look at how every team to appear in the Hall of Fame Game fared during the season in which it played in Canton.

Year	Team	Record
1962	Giants	12-2, Lost NFL Championship
1962	Cardinals	4-9-1, Missed playoffs
1963	Browns	10-4, Missed playoffs
1963	Steelers	7-4-3, Missed playoffs
1964	Colts	12-2, Lost NFL Championship
1964	Steelers	5-9, Missed playoffs
1965	Lions	6-7-1, Missed playoffs
1965	Washington	6-8, Missed playoffs
1967	Browns	9-5, Lost Conference Championship
1967	Eagles	6-7-1, Missed playoffs
1968	Cowboys	12-2, Lost Conference Championship
1968	Bears	7-7, Missed playoffs
1969	Packers	8-6, Missed playoffs
1969	Falcons	6-8, Missed playoffs
1970	Saints	2-11-1, Missed playoffs
1970	Vikings	12-2, Lost Divisional Round
1971	Oilers	4-9-1, Missed playoffs
1971	Rams	8-5-1, Missed playoffs
1972	Chiefs	8-6, Missed playoffs
1972	Giants	8-6, Missed playoffs
1973	49ers	5-9, Missed playoffs
1973	Patriots	5-9, Missed playoffs
1974	Bills	9-5, Lost Divisional Round
1974	Cardinals	10-4, Lost Divisional Round
1975	Washington	8-6, Missed playoffs
1975	Bengals	11-3, Lost Divisional Round
1976	Broncos	9-5, Missed playoffs
1976	Lions	6-8, Missed playoffs
1977	Bears	9-5, Lost Divisional Round
1977	Jets	3-11, Missed playoffs
1978	Dolphins	11-5, Lost Wild Card Round
1978	Eagles	9-7, Lost Wild Card Round
1979	Cowboys	11-5, Lost Divisional Round
1979	Raiders	9-7, Missed playoffs
1980	Chargers	11-5, Lost AFC Championship
1980	Packers	5-10-1, Missed playoffs
1981	Falcons	7-9, Missed playoffs
1981	Browns	5-11, Missed playoffs
1982	Colts	0-8-1, Missed playoffs
1982	Vikings	5-4, Lost Divisional Round
1983	Saints	8-8, Missed playoffs
1983	Steelers	10-6, Lost Divisional Round
1984	Seahawks	12-4, Lost Divisional Round
1984	Buccaneers	6-10, Missed playoffs
1985	Giants	10-6, Lost Divisional Round
1985	Oilers	5-11, Missed playoffs
1986	Patriots	11-5, Lost Divisional Round
1986	Cardinals	4-11-1, Missed playoffs
1987	49ers	13-2, Lost Divisional Round
1987	Chiefs	4-11, Missed playoffs
1988	Bengals	12-4, Lost Super Bowl
1988	Rams	10-6, Lost Wild Card Round
1989	Washington	10-6, Missed playoffs
1989	Bills	9-7, Lost Divisional Round
1990	Browns	3-13, Missed playoffs
1990	Bears	11-5, Lost Divisional Round
1991	Lions	12-4, Lost NFC Championship
1991	Broncos	12-4, Lost AFC Championship
1992	Jets	4-12, Missed playoffs
1992	Eagles	11-5, Lost Divisional Round
1993	Packers	9-7, Lost Divisional Round
1993	Raiders	10-6, Lost Divisional Round
1994	Chargers	11-5, Lost Super Bowl
1994	Falcons	7-9, Missed playoffs
1995	Panthers	7-9, Missed playoffs
1995	Jaguars	4-12, Missed playoffs
1996	Colts	9-7, Lost Wild Card Round
1996	Saints	3-13, Missed playoffs
1997	Vikings	9-7, Lost Divisional Round
1997	Seahawks	8-8, Missed playoffs
1998	Steelers	7-9, Missed playoffs
1998	Buccaneers	8-8, Missed playoffs
1999	Cowboys	8-8, Lost Wild Card Round
1999	Browns	2-14, Missed playoffs
2000	Patriots	5-11, Missed playoffs
2000	49ers	6-10, Missed playoffs
2001	Rams	14-2, Lost Super Bowl
2001	Dolphins	11-5, Lost Wild Card Round
2002	Texans	4-12, Missed playoffs
2002	Giants	10-6, Lost Wild Card Round
2003	Packers	10-6, Lost Divisional Round
2003	Chiefs	13-3, Lost Divisional Round
2004	Broncos	10-6, Lost Wild Card Round
2004	Washington	6-10, Missed playoffs
2005	Bears	11-5, Lost Divisional Round
2005	Dolphins	9-7, Missed playoffs
2006	Raiders	2-14, Missed playoffs
2006	Eagles	10-6, Lost Divisional Round
2007	Saints	7-9, Missed playoffs
2007	Steelers	10-6, Lost Wild Card Round
2008	Colts	12-4, Lost Wild Card Round
2008	Washington	8-8, Missed playoffs
2009	Bills	6-10, Missed playoffs
2009	Titans	8-8, Missed playoffs
2010	Cowboys	6-10, Missed playoffs
2010	Bengals	4-12, Missed playoffs
2012	Cardinals	5-11, Missed playoffs
2012	Saints	7-9, Missed playoffs
2013	Dolphins	8-8, Missed playoffs
2013	Cowboys	8-8, Missed playoffs
2014	Giants	6-10, Missed playoffs
2014	Bills	9-7, Missed playoffs
2015	Steelers	10-6, Lost Divisional Round
2015	Vikings	11-5, Lost Wild Card Round
2017	Cardinals	8-8, Missed playoffs
2017	Cowboys	9-7, Missed playoffs
2018	Bears	12-4, Lost Wild Card Round
2018	Ravens	10-6, Lost Wild Card Round
2019	Broncos	7-9, Missed playoffs
2019	Falcons	7-9, Missed playoffs
2021	Cowboys	12-5, Lost Wild Card Round
2021	Steelers	9-7-1, Lost Wild Card Round
2022	Jaguars	TBD
2022	Raiders	TBD

Stats courtesy of Pro Football Reference

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