Buccaneers Chosen For HBO’s “Hard Knocks”
By James Yarcho
The Buccaneers will have a “major announcement” Wednesday at 1 p.m. SPOILER ALERT: They will be featured on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” series.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers will announce Wednesday that they will be featured on HBO’s training camp documentary series “Hard Knocks” per Roy Cummings;
Here's hoping the #Buccaneers are ready for their close-up. They have been chosen for Hard Knocks. Official announcement coming Wednesday
— Roy Cummings (@RCummingsFHCN) April 18, 2017
It really doesn’t come as a surprise. Everyone from Jason Licht to Jameis Winston to Dirk Koetter have spoken about embracing the opportunity to be featured, getting the Buccaneers into the national spotlight, and it not being a distraction. Bucs fans will have mixed emotions I’m sure as they will get some inside looks into their favorite team, however teams featured on the show don’t seem to have the best of luck during the season.
In fact, the Atlanta Falcons were featured in 2014 and finished the season 6-10, leading to the firing of Mike Smith. Teams that have been on Hard Knocks are a combined 86-90 with five teams reaching the postseason and only one team having actually won a playoff game.
The spotlight will likely be on Jameis Winston as he is – by far – the most charismatic and popular player on the team. Putting him front and center will help people outside the area get to know the third year quarterback on a different level and alleviate some misconceptions about him, his character, and proudly display his work ethic.
Other fun story lines to follow will include the kicking competition between Roberto Aguayo and Nick Folk, the running back drama, DeSean Jackson‘s arrival, Kwon Alexander and him possibly (finally) getting the recognition he deserves, and Dirk Koetter being, well, Dirk Koetter.
The Buccaneers were far from a surprise selection for the documentary as it has been rumored for well over a month that they would be the selection. Whether or not people will find it interesting or not is a different story. If you don’t like the Bucs, you probably won’t. If you don’t like Winston, you’ll find something about him to criticize. If you love football, if you love passion for the game, if you love watching guys striving to be the best under a coach who doesn’t blow smoke up anyone’s rear-end, then you’ll find the Buccaneers a compelling watch.
Next: Jason Licht Dishes On Doug Martin
Lights, camera, action.