Detroit Lions lined up to be must-see tv on ‘Hard Knocks’ this year

The Detroit Lions were among the teams who could’ve been forced to participate this year, and they will indeed be featured on HBO’s “Hard Knocks.”

Based on the NFL’s criteria to force a team to be on the show, the Detroit Lions were an automatic top candidate to be on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” this year. At the NFL league meetings Monday morning, it was announced the Lions will indeed be featured on the training camp reality show.

Team president Rod Wood reacted to the announcement.

"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.”"

According to team PR, the Lions will be the oldest franchise to be featured on “Hard Knocks”, founded in 1930, and they’ll also be the first NFC North franchise to be on the show. The Lions are the 15th NFL team to be on a season of “Hard Knocks”.

The Detroit Lions will be must-see tv on “Hard Knocks”

Lions head coach Dan Campbell is highly quotable, beyond the “biting knee caps” quote that got so much attention during his introductory press conference last year, and as evidenced multiple times last season he wears his emotions on his sleeve. That will make him a great and genuine television “character”, and he will be totally unfiltered on premium cable.

Beyond Campbell, assistant coaches Duce Staley, Aaron Glenn, Aubrey Pleasant and Kelvin Sheppard are sure to be fun to see and hear in an unfiltered, un-edited setting. Former Lions linebacker Chris Spielman is of course now involved in the organization, and sure to be prominently featured too.

The 2022 edition of “Hard Knocks” will debut Tuesday Aug. 9, with the last of five hour-long episodes, an episode that typically focuses on final roster cutdowns, on Tuesday Sept. 6.