The 2013 NFL season is upon us, and the Hall of Fame Game is what kicks it all off on Sunday night in Canton, OH, the home of the Pro Football Hall of Fame. This year, the teams that will put toe to leather to start the campaign are the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins. But before you place a bet on Hall of Fame Game, we have everything that you’ll ever need to know covered for what should be a remarkable start to the season.

The Hall of Fame Game odds usually feature a relatively low ‘total’, and this year is no exception. Head Coach Jason Garrett for the Cowboys has already stated that he is going to be using his starters and his second stringers very little, and that means that there is going to be a very simple offensive game plan in place that will be run by third and fourth string quarterbacks. On the other side of the ball, we don’t expect to see much out of QB Ryan Tannehill either. In fact, coaches have almost always played the Hall of Fame Game relatively close to the vest offensively. We have seen some odd plays on special teams, namely an onside kick for the Indianapolis Colts to start off the season in 2008, and a fake punt by P AJ Trapasso that went for a touchdown in 2009. Aside from that though, defenses tend to rule the day, and if not for some of the shenanigans that came out on special teams in recent years, seemingly every Hall of Fame Game would fail to reach the ‘total’.

Hall of Fame Game Betting Trends (Entering 2013 Hall of Fame Game)
-The average Hall of Fame Game has reached just 32.54 points per game
-The median final score of the Hall of Fame Game is 20-10
-The most points ever scored by one team in a Hall of Fame Game is 48 (Baltimore Colts, 1964)
-Of the 49 Hall of Fame Games played, there have been six shutouts
-25.5% of all teams that played in the Hall of Fame Game have been held to single digits
-43.9% of all teams that played in the Hall of Fame Game have been held to 14 points or fewer
-21.4% of all teams that played in the Hall of Fame Game have scored more than 21 points
-8.1% of all losing teams that played in the Hall of Fame Game have scored more than 21 points
-The average number of points in the Hall of Fame Game since 2000 has been just 31.9 points per game, but only 5 of the 12 games exceeded 27 total points
-The average margin of victory in the Hall of Fame Game is 11.08 points per game
-12 of the last 17 Hall of Fame Games have ended with margins of victory of nine points or less
-The biggest ever margin of victory in the Hall of Fame Game was 38 points (Seattle Seahawks, 1984)
-20.4% of all Hall of Fame Games have been decided by three points or fewer
-Two Hall of Fame Games have ended in ties (1962, 1980)

Hall of Fame Game Results
2012 – New Orleans Saints 17 – Arizona Cardinals 10
2011 – No Game
2010 – Dallas Cowboys 16 – Cincinnati Bengals 7
2009 – Tennesse Titans 21 – Buffalo Bills 18
2008 – Washington Redskins 30 – Indianapolis Colts 16
2007 – Pittsburgh Steelers 20 – New Orleans Saints 7
2006 – Oakland Raiders 16 – Philadelphia Eagles 10
2005 – Chicago Bears 27 – Miami Dolphins 24
2004 – Washington Redskins 20 – Denver Broncos 17
2003 – Kansas City Chiefs 9 – Green Bay Packers 0
2002 – New York Giants 34 – Houston Texans 17
2001 – St. Louis Rams 17 – Miami Dolphins 10
2000 – New England Patriots 20 – San Francisco 49ers 0
1999 – Cleveland Browns 20 – Dallas Cowboys 17 (OT)
1998 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers 30 – Pittsburgh Steelers 6
1997 – Minnesota Vikings 28 – Seattle Seahawks 26
1996 – Indianapolis Colts 10 – New Orleans Saints 3
1995 – Carolina Panthers 20 – Jacksonville Jaguars 14
1994 – Atlanta Falcons 21 – San Diego Chargers 7
1993 – Los Angeles Raiders 19 – Green Bay Packers 3
1992 – New York Jets 41 – Philadelphia Eagles 14
1991 – Detroit Lions 14 – Denver Broncos 3
1990 – Chicago Bears 13 – Cleveland Browns 0
1989 – Washington Redskins 31 – Buffalo Bills 6
1988 – Cincinnati Bengals 14 – Los Angeles Rams 7
1987 – San Francisco 49ers 20 – Kansas City Chiefs 7
1986 – New England Patriots 21 – St. Louis Cardinals 16
1985 – New York Giants 21 – Houston Oilers 20
1984 – Seattle Seahawks 38 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers 0
1983 – Pittsburgh Steelers 27 – New Orleans Saints 14
1982 – Minnesota Vikings 30 – Baltimore Colts 14
1981 – Cleveland Browns 24 – Atlanta Falcons 10
1980 – Green Bay Packers 0 – San Diego Chargers 0
1979 – Oakland Raiders 20 – Dallas Cowboys 13
1978 – Philadelphia Eagles 17 – Miami Dolphins 3
1977 – Chicago Bears 20 – New York Jets 6
1976 – Denver Broncos 10 – Detroit Lions 7
1975 – Washington Redskins 17 – Cincinnati Bengals 9
1974 – St. Louis Cardinals 21 – Buffalo Bills 13
1973 – San Francisco 49ers 20 – New England Patriots 7
1972 – Kansas City Chiefs 23 – New York Giants 17
1971 – Los Angeles Rams 17 – Houston Oilers 6
1970 – New Orelans Saints 14 – Minnesota Vikings 13
1969 – Green Bay Packers 38 – Atlanta Falcons 24
1968 – Chicago Bears 30 – Dallas Cowboys 24
1967 – Philadelphia Eagles 28 – Cleveland Browns 13
1966 – No Game
1965 – Washington Redskins 20 – Detroit Lions 3
1964 – Baltimore Colts 48 – Pittsburgh Steelers 17
1963 – Pittsburgh Steelers 16 – Cleveland Browns 7
1962 – New York Giants 21 – St. Louis Cardinals 21