The secretive days of the Bill Belichick-era New England Patriots are truly over. In fact, they will soon grant an unprecedented level of outside access into their day-to-day operations.
As was announced by the NFL at its annual meeting on Monday night, the Patriots will be featured on the HBO documentary series Hard Knocks in 2027.
Advertisement
It will be a first for the franchise, which has allowed filming behind-the-scenes before but not to the extent the show typically provides. Hard Knocks, which is produced by NFL Films in cooperation with HBO, takes an up-close look at teams in training camp and preseason, typically including footage from team meetings, player profiles and even cuts.
The Patriots successfully evaded the spotlight the show brings for years because they were annually exempt from participation under the previous rules. Teams that had made the playoffs at some point in the last two years were allowed to skip the show, as were those who changed head coaches or appeared within the previous eight years.
The playoff stipulation was removed last year, however, which now puts the Patriots on the show’s schedule. Before their appearance, the Seattle Seahawks — who beat New England in Super Bowl LX in February — will appear on Hard Knocks as the team of choice this summer.
Read the full article here
