Season 1 of Hard Knocks: Offseason was instantly iconic, in a "We all knew this was going to be a disaster the moment we saw it" kind of way.
So much so, that it might turn out to be Season 1 and Done.
Tom Rock of Newsday tweeted Tuesday, "This isn’t a definitive report but in talking to league and media folks this past week it sounds like no team wants anything to do with an Offseason Hard Knocks' this summer and it may be a one-and-done," he wrote. "Hard to imagine why."
The clip of team owner John Mara telling GM Joe Schoen that he's "going to have a hard time sleeping" if star running back Saquon Barkley signed with the rival Philadelphia Eagles is one of the most infamous out-of-competition clips in the history of sports television. You've surely seen it a million times by now, but one more won't hurt.
Aside from Saquon, Hard Knocks: Offseason was defined by the organization's decision on whether to draft a quarterback at Pick No. 6.
Along the way, HBO captured more incredible shots, like this one of Schoen's oldest son Carson imploring his dad to trade up for Jayden Daniels. "You only get this job once," he says. "Might as well try to win."
From the mouths of babes...
Personally, my favorite episode came at the combine, when head coach Brian Daboll led the club's group interviews with the top quarterback prospects in the 2024 draft.
In a later clip, Daboll says he would trade up to take Daniels.
As we know, Barkley walked to Philadelphia and the Giants drafted LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers after Schoen begrudgingly decided to give sixth-year quarterback Daniel Jones one last chance to prove himself worthy of future investment.
One season later, Barkley rushed for more yards in a season (regular season and postseason) than any player in NFL history en route to becoming the NFL Offensive Player of the Year while helping the Eagles win a Super Bowl; Daniels was the NFL Rookie of the Year while guiding the Commanders to their first NFC Championship appearance since 1991; and Jones was a Minnesota Viking by Week 13.
To quote the great Ian Darke, "You could not write a script like this."
And so, no, it's no wonder why NFL teams are reportedly shying away from allowing television cameras to document their offseason decision-making for the league to see. After witnessing Schoen's experience from afar, if you polled the other 31 GMs if they'd rather be the star of Hard Knocks: Offseason Season 2 or have NFL Films document their colonoscopy in all its NFL Films glory, at least 30 are taking the colonoscopy. (Jerry Jones is the lone exception.)
The other aspect of this discussion? There's no way a Season 2 could possibly be as good as the Giants' experience. There's just no way. Unless HBO's cameras were embedded within the Dallas Mavericks as they concocted the Luka trade and we don't know it yet, there's no way duplicate the disastrous magic with another team.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.