Giants will be featured in HBO’s first offseason edition of ‘Hard Knocks’

For the first time, the New York Giants will be featured in the HBO docuseries “Hard Knocks” — something John Mara long tried to avoid.

The New York Giants held out for as long as they could, but the time has finally arrived. They will be featured in the first offseason edition of the popular HBO docuseries Hard Knocks, premiering on July 2 at 9 p.m. ET.

The official announcement was made on Wednesday.

HARD KNOCKS: OFFSEASON WITH THE NEW YORK GIANTS will bring viewers inside the New York Giants organization as the team prepares for their highly anticipated 100th season. Camera crews will chronicle the team’s every move as general manager Joe Schoen and other members of the team’s front office and staff navigate the critical offseason period from January to July 2024, from the NFL Scouting Combine to free agency, to the NFL Draft, and team minicamps.

“As we enter our 100th season, we look forward to providing our fans with the opportunity to see what it takes to build an NFL roster. Beginning the moment the previous season ended, we gave NFL Films unprecedented access to this critical time of the year. We know viewers will gain insight from moments that have never been captured before and are excited for them to learn more about our Giants history,” said Nilay Shah, Giants senior vice president of marketing and brand strategy.

Although fans will express their excitement over this development, it’s likely a compromise for Giants co-owner John Mara, who has long fought against the team appearing on Hard Knocks, which debuted in 2001 and has had a separate in-season edition for the past three years.

“That announcement will come,” Mara told the New York Daily News in 2010, “when I’m next to my father in Gates of Heaven cemetery.”

The storylines will be interesting, however. Filming began in January, and it might show the verbal altercation between head coach Brian Daboll and former defensive coordinator Wink Martindale, leading to the latter’s departure.

The docuseries might also cover the Giants’ thinking as it related to a quarterback in the 2024 NFL draft and their behind-the-scenes thoughts on Daniel Jones, as well as their decision to let running back Saquon Barkley walk in free agency.

“We are beyond thrilled that the New York Giants have opened their doors to the ‘Hard Knocks’ cameras for the first time ever. The NFL offseason is a fascinating period that we’ve always wanted to explore and we can’t wait to show football fans everywhere what NFL Films has been capturing behind the scenes at the team’s headquarters,” HBO executives Nancy Abraham, Lisa Heller, and Bentley Weiner said in a statement.

In total, five one-hour episodes will be made available from Tuesday, July 2 through Tuesday, July 30.

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