GREEN BAY – As anticipated, the Packers will be playing in the NFL/Hall of Fame Game to kick off the 2016 preseason, and the opponent will be the Indianapolis Colts.
The game is slated for Sunday, Aug. 7, at 7 p.m. CT at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio.
The night before the game, former Packers QB Brett Favre will be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, a selection that made the Packers a natural choice for the Hall of Fame Game.
Former Colts head coach Tony Dungy and receiver Marvin Harrison also will be inducted that weekend, making the Colts another sensible pick for the game.
The rest of the Hall of Fame's Class of 2016 includes owner Eddie DeBartolo Jr., offensive linemen Orlando Pace and Dick Stanfel, quarterback Ken Stabler and linebacker/defensive end Kevin Greene, who was an assistant coach for the Packers for five seasons (2009-13).
The Packers-Colts matchup will be a preview of a 2016 regular-season game, as the two teams will meet at Lambeau Field on a date to be determined. The regular-season schedule and the rest of the preseason schedule will be released sometime in April.
It's unusual for two teams scheduled to meet in the regular season to face each other in the preseason, but it's not unprecedented. It's happened with Green Bay as recently as 2011 (Kansas City), and it also occurred in 2009 (Arizona).
The Packers and Colts, who last met in the preseason in 2011 and in the regular season in 2012, have each appeared in the Hall of Fame Game four times, but never against one another. It will be the first trip to Canton since 2003 for Green Bay and the first since 2008 for Indianapolis.
Back in 2003, former Packers receiver James Lofton was inducted into the Hall of Fame.
Strangely enough, two of the Packers' four Hall of Fame games have ended early due to thunderstorms, including that last visit to Canton in '03, against Kansas City. The other was in 1980 vs. San Diego, which ended in a scoreless tie.
The Packers and Colts have met in the preseason nine times in their history, with the Packers going 4-5.
Packers in HOF Game (1-2-1)
1969 vs. Atlanta (W, 38-24)
1980 vs. San Diego (T, 0-0)*
1993 vs. L.A. Raiders (L, 19-3)
2003 vs. Kansas City (L, 9-0)*
*Game ended early due to lightning and heavy rain
