After the longest wait for a team to be announced in the history of the show, HBO will feature the New York Jets on this year’s Hard Knocks—which had been the expectation and is now official:
Ready to take flight. ✈️#HardKnocks Training Camp with the @nyjets premieres August 8th on @StreamOnMax. pic.twitter.com/z24BYqtpOY
— NFL (@NFL) July 17, 2023
The longer wait for an announcement with training camp just a day away seemed to be due to a reluctance from the Jets—and other teams—about appearing on the show, but no one else volunteering locks New York into the spotlight.
Of course, there will be no shortage of storylines to follow with legendary quarterback Aaron Rodgers on a new team, young stars like Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson, and Sauce Gardner having big personalities, and general manager Joe Douglas perhaps on the hot seat (20-46 record) with team owner Woody Johnson wanting a winner. In terms of entertainment value, the season has a lot to live up to considering how memorable Rex Ryan’s team was on the show in 2010:
The last time the Jets were on Hard Knocks, head coach Rex Ryan delivered an unforgettable speech. 🤣🍨pic.twitter.com/SboNktKEv7
— Wolf Sports (@wolfsports) July 12, 2023
The interesting part for this summer might be just how open the players are about appearing, as it’s easy to imagine everyone shying away from the cameras out of spite. And if New York has a slow start, the HBO cameras will undoubtedly be viewed as having been a distraction.
Hard Knocks will premiere on August 8 on HBO and Max.