HBO's "Hard Knocks: Offseason" will not feature an NFL team this year. After the New York Giants willingly exposed the ugly underbelly of a franchise's offseason operations, including tough discussions about pending free agent players like Saquon Barkley, nobody will take the show's calls.
This conversation between Saquon Barkley and #NYGiants GM Joe Schoen I assume Saquon thought was private. Fact that Giants allowed “Hard Knocks” put it out there publicly is a disgrace. What an asinine conversation by Schoen as well. Why would Barkley want to play for that… pic.twitter.com/pVRtRFJS6Y
— Howard Eskin (@howardeskin) July 10, 2024
It appeared like the program would be a one-and-done situation despite receiving high ratings and garnering a ton of fan interest. However, one unlikely head coach reportedly has agreed to let the cameras in for unprecedented access.
Bill Belichick, now the head coach at the University of North Carolina, will be featured on the show by NFL Films. The college program will be the first to be featured by the professional documentary series, revealing the highly anticipated inner workings of the eight-time Super Bowl-winning coach's operation.
UNC football's general manager, Michael Lombardi, said that it wasn't a "done deal" in an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, but indications remain Belichick and the Tar Heels are in line to be featured by HBO.
Bill Belichick saved Hard Knocks after NFL teams freaked from Giants' experience
It's understandable that other NFL teams don't want anything to do with "Hard Knocks: Offseason" after what happened with Giants general manager Joe Schoen last year. Most fans speculate over what caused a team and a player to part ways but NFL Films let everyone see how the sausage gets made. The reaction was just as you'd expect.
Schoen, naturally, has been asked about that sequence of events just about every chance the media has to speak with him. At the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday, he diplomatically handled questions about Barkley's Super Bowl success with the rival Philadelphia Eagles after the world saw Schoen write him off.
He also had a tongue-in-cheek answer for whether teams had called asking about his experience with the "Hard Knocks" team, saying "no, I haven't gotten any calls on that, but I think I know what I would tell them."
That message clearly resonated with the rest of the league and despite Belichick's acceptance of the sometimes intrusive coverage for his college team, it could still spell the end of the new series. Fans will wait with bated breath to see how Belichick handles it and whether some more ugly moments are revealed this summer.