NFL taps Bills for 'Hard Knocks' debut during training camp. NFC East as featured in-season division
EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — The reigning NFL MVP will be a featured attraction this season on the league's training camp documentary, with the Buffalo Bills making their first appearance on 'Hard Knocks.'
The New York Giants will get another shot, too, after their uncomfortable debut.
The NFL announced Wednesday at the spring owners meetings that the Bills, led by quarterback Josh Allen, were selected for the behind-the-scenes show on HBO that's in its 25th year. The five-part series will air on Tuesdays beginning on Aug. 5.
The NFC East was also picked as the featured division on the in-season show, with filming of the Giants, Dallas Cowboys, Washington Commanders and defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles set to air in December. The league reached a new multi-year deal with HBO to continue to broadcast the show.
The Bills, who hold their training camp off-site at St. John Fisher University outside of Rochester, New York, have entered their ninth year under head coach Sean McDermott. Still seeking their first championship, having not appeared in the Super Bowl since their fourth consecutive loss following the 1993 season, the Bills have won five straight AFC East titles and qualified for the playoffs in seven of the past eight years.
Allen has been a driver of that success, entering his eighth season and coming off his first MVP award. The Bills return a majority of their offense from a team that finished second in the NFL in scoring in the 2024 season. They retooled their defense, starting with the addition in free agency of edge rusher Joey Bosa.
The NFL revamped its rules last year around 'Hard Knocks' appearances, previously allowing teams that made the playoffs within the previous two seasons to decline to participate. Such an opt-out is no longer an option. Teams now ineligible for selection include those with a first-year head coach, those that have appeared on the training camp version of the show in the past eight seasons, and those picked for the in-season version focusing on one division.
The Chicago Bears were a first-time 'Hard Knocks' participant last season during training camp. HBO and co-producer NFL Films last year added the in-season show, filming around the four AFC North teams, and an offseason version that premiered — and perhaps ended — with a focus on the Giants.
The awkward goodbye between running back Saquon Barkley and general manager Joe Schoen was a prominent part of that series, which has so far not been renewed.
Barkley, who signed with the rival Eagles and went on to win the Super Bowl, later complained that his side of the conversation with Schoen was recorded and aired without his consent.
Schoen's informing Barkley that the Giants would not make him a contract offer or put the franchise tag on him and thus let him become a free agent became a must-see scene, along with a pained reaction from owner John Mara about losing a popular player.
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