Detroit Lions to Be Featured on HBO's 'Hard Knocks' TV Series

Will Dan Campbell "restore the roar"? Will there be more clips of him talking about biting opponents kneecaps or wanting a real lion at practice? We shall see!

This summer we'll get a behind-the-scenes look at the start of head coach Dan Campbell's second season with the team at the Detroit Lions' training camp.

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Detroit Lions to Star on HBO TV Series Hard Knocks

The NFL announced in its annual meeting on Monday, March 28 that the Lions will be the focus of upcoming season of HBO's reality series "Hard Knocks", Wood TV 8 reports.

Detroit Lions Team President and CEO, Rod Wood, said in a statement,

“We are excited about the opportunity to showcase the City of Detroit and the amazing culture we are building at the Lions. HBO Sports and NFL Films are the best of the best and we know they will be excellent partners in sharing our story with football fans around the world.”

This the 17th season of "Hard Knocks" and the first time the Detroit Lions will appear on the Emmy-winning sports series that focuses on the daily lives and routines of players and coaches. The Lions are the 15th team to appear on the show since its inception in 2001, according to ESPN. The Dallas Cowboys have made the most appearances on Hard Knocks, last year was their third time being featured on the show.

According to a release,

[Hard Knocks] will chronicle head coach Dan Campbell entering his second season leading the team and an intriguing mix of young emerging stars, established veterans, free agent additions and highly regarded rookie hopefuls throughout training camp and the preseason... A 30-person NFL Films crew will be at Lions' training camp in Allen Park, shooting more than 1,750 hours of footage over the course of the series. Camera and sound crews will have unencumbered access to players' and coaches' meeting rooms, training rooms, living quarters and practice fields.

How Do NFL Teams Get Picked to be on the Show Hard Knocks?

If you're wondering how a team ends up getting featured on the HBO series, Pride of Detroit says,

Because 'Hard Knocks' can be a bit intrusive and distracting, most teams have stopped volunteering to appear on the show despite the extra publicity. So, the NFL applied a rule several years ago that they could force a team to be displayed on the show.

However there are three stipulations that ensure a team won't have to appear on the show according to Pride of Detroit:

Teams with a first-year head coach
Teams who have made the playoffs in at least one of the past two years
Teams who have been on “Hard Knocks” in the past 10 years

Based on those guidelines, two other teams were in consideration for the 2022 season of Hard Knocks: the Carolina Panthers and the New York Jets.

According to the Detroit Free Press,

The Lions, coming off a 3-13-1 season and four straight last-place finishes in the NFC North, were an attractive selection this year in part because of head coach Dan Campbell.

When Does the Detroit Lions Season of HBO's Hard Knocks Premier?

The five-episode season of "Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Detroit Lions" will debut August 9, 2002 at 11p.m. ET. Fans can watch on HBO and HBO Max. Each hour-long episode will air at the same time Tuesday nights through the season finale September 6.