AP

The NFL finally found a way to get people to think Thursday night football was a good idea.

The Pro Football Hall of Fame announced this morning that next year’s Hall of Fame Game will be played on Thursday, Aug. 3, two days before the Class of 2017 enshrinement ceremony on the same field at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

This year’s game had to be cancelled because of unplayable conditions, in part because of the short turnaround time between the Saturday night enshrinement and the Sunday game.

Crews were unable to get the field uncovered and painted with enough time for the paint to dry, and when clumps of paint and rubber pellets began to form, it became clear the Colts and Packers couldn’t play safely, so the game was canceled.

So the Hall eliminated another potential headache by putting the game first, and perhaps getting people to hang around an extra day in Canton.