The summer is right around the corner and so, too, is the latest season of HBO’s Hard Knocks. Or at least you would think at this point of the year.
For some reason, the league has yet to announce a team to be featured this summer on the show. Each year, the league can pick a team based on certain criteria to be the featured team and the Jets are one of four teams that are eligible to be selected.
As a refresher, the three rules for a team to be exempt from being selected are:
- They have a first-year head coach (Robert Saleh is in his third season)
- They’ve reached the playoffs within the previous two seasons (Jets haven’t reached since 2010 season)
- They have appeared on the show in past ten seasons (Jets appeared in 2010)
The Jets are seen as the most likely option to be selected for obvious reasons. The other potential choices are the Chicago Bears, New Orleans Saints and Washington Commanders. However, if Saleh had his way, the team would be kept out of that spotlight.
“I know several teams would love to have Hard Knocks in their building,” Saleh said Friday. “But we’re not one of them.”
Back in April, Jets special-teams ace Justin Hardee expressed his displeasure at the possibility of being on Hard Knocks.
Man y’all can give hard knocks to another team man we tryna focus and win that’s a distraction 🤷🏾♂️ https://t.co/I3UKllwL7D
— Justin Hardee Sr. (@jhardee_19) April 2, 2023
Even further back, in March, Jets owner Woody Johnson said “Whether we do it this year, I think we’d have to take a hard look.”
Woody Johnson on whether the Jets would want to be on "Hard Knocks" this year: "Whether we do it this year, I think we’d have to take a hard look."
— Brian Costello (@BrianCoz) March 28, 2023
Safe to say there would be some unhappy campers if the NFL forces the Jets to appear on the show. Time will tell if that becomes a reality.