How to Watch Lions' Primetime Matchup against Chargers

The Lions will kick off their preseason schedule Thursday against the Chargers.

Detroit Lions quarterback Kyle Allen (8) hands the ball to running back Sione Vaki (33) at practice during training camp at Meijer Performance Center in Allen Park on Monday, July 21, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Lions will kick off their exhibition season Thursday night against the L.A. Chargers in the league's annual Pro Football Hall of Fame game. Kickoff for the preseason tilt is set for 8 p.m. (EST). 

To no surprise, Detroit does not plan to play its first-stringers in the nationally televised exhibition game. Instead, those players will rest up after taking part in a scrimmage in practice Tuesday. 

“This will be our first scrimmage that we will have in camp here. Most of it will be focused on the group of guys that I don’t see playing in a couple of days for the Chargers,” Lions head man Dan Campbell told reporters Tuesday. “So, we’re really going to get them a number of reps here, get them some good intensity.”

Per Campbell, the list of players sitting out the Lions’ first of four preseason contests this summer will include rookies Tyleik Williams and Tate Ratledge – both of whom are readily in contention for starting jobs in camp.

Altogether, Campbell & Co. are expected to rest 20-plus players Thursday. If such comes to fruition, it would be highly resemblant to Detroit's preseason openers the past two years. Campbell's squad, in fact, sat 27 players in its exhibition opener in 2024 and 28 players in its first preseason game in 2023.

Consequently, there should be an ample amount of playing time Thursday for the Lions’ second-and-third-stringers, such as reserve quarterbacks Hendon Hooker and Kyle Allen, and those firmly on the bubble in camp.

Detroit Lions vs. Los Angeles Chargers 

What: Pro Football Hall of Fame Game

When: Thursday, 8 p.m.

Where: Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium, Canton, Ohio

TV/radio: NBC, Peacock/97.1