One of the offseason story lines this year has been HBO's search for a team to do their training camp series "Hard Knocks." The Miami Dolphins accepted the offer on Wednesday, the team announced, but that was only after a number of teams reportedly turned it down. Among the teams who reportedly turned down 'Hard Knocks' are the Seahawks, Texans, 49ers, Redskins and Falcons.
But if you ask a producer from "Hard Knocks", no one else was really offered the show.
There were reports other NFL teams had turned down offers to do "Hard Knocks." NFL Films senior coordinating producer Ross Ketover disputed those claims.
"We cast a wide net," Ketover said. "We talk to a lot of teams to gauge their interest. Some are very interested. Some are interested with caveats that are not acceptable with us. Others say we'll do it in future years. Others are not interested.
This sounds like a technicality more than anything. "Hard Knocks" approaches a team about their interest in doing it -- we're calling that an "offer" -- and the team tells them they're not interested. Now, is that an offer to be on the show? Maybe not, but it's semantics.