• Home
  • News
  • NFL News: Dan Campbell Will Star As Detroit Lions Chosen For Hard Knocks Series

NFL news: Dan Campbell will star as Detroit Lions chosen for Hard Knocks series

Dan Campbell is the head coach of the Detroit Lions

The 17th edition of Hard Knocks will feature the Detroit Lions and their charismatic head coach Dan Campbell as they try and turn their fortunes around.

The NFL have announced that the Detroit Lions will be the subject of their latest award-winning Hard Knocks television show in conjunction with HBO.

'Hard Knocks: Training camp with the Detroit Lions' will be shown in August and go behind the scenes with an unfiltered, access-all-areas look at what it takes to make it in the NFL.

The Lions will be starring in the 17th series of the Hard Knocks franchise, which has won 18 Sports Emmys and takes fans behind the curtain of exactly what it's like as players try to make the final cut on an NFL team.
Detroit will have head coach Dan Campbell taking charge for his second season, and he was no doubt behind much of the thinking for having the Lions star in the latest Hard Knocks given his full-blooded approach and memorable press conferences.

Campbell famously claimed his team would 'bite a kneecap off' when describing the fighting spirit he wanted to instil during his introduction press conference in January 2021.

Dan Campbell will be a star on Hard Knocks

The first-year head coach was also an emotional character during a tough season for the Lions, when they couldn't seem to buy a win and started the season 0-8.

A tie with Pittsburgh was followed by the first win in 364 days when they beat the Minnesota Vikings to end a 15-game losing run. They eventually finished off the campaign 3-13-1.
While the battle between the players to make the final squad is also must-see viewing, getting an insight into Campbell should also be box office.
Lions president Rod Wood feels the behind-the-scenes show will showcase the team's culture that is growing under Campbell.
"We are excited about the opportunity to showcase the City of Detroit and the amazing culture we are building at the Lions," said Wood. "HBO Sports and NFL Films are the best of the best and we know they will be excellent partners in sharing our story with football fans around the world."

The best quotes from Lions head coach Dan Campbell

Campbell in his opening press conference really started strong.
"We're gonna kick you in the teeth, and when you punch us back we're gonna smile at you, and when you knock us down we're going to get up, and on the way, we're going to bite a kneecap off," Campbell famously said.
"We're going to stand up, and it's going to take two more shots to knock us down. And on the way up, we're going to take your other kneecap, and we're going to get up, and it's gonna take three shots to get us down. And when we do, we're gonna take another hunk out of you."
Campbell had some not so good ideas about a team mascot.
"I don't think we're going to be able to do it, but I would love to literally just have a pet lion. Just a legit pet lion on a chain - a big-ass chain.
"And he just, he really is my pet. We just walk around the building, we go out to practice. We're just … there we are."
Watch out on Hard Knocks for more Campbell classics like this on his players.
"I told them, honestly, from day one, I said, 'Look, I'm not carrying your toilet paper around. I'm not gonna wipe your butt. You're gonna wipe your own butt.
"You handle it and I'll treat you like men until you prove otherwise."

How have teams on Hard Knocks played that season?

The Dallas Cowboys have been on Hard Knocks three times, unsurprisingly as the soap opera team in the league, while the Los Angeles Rams have featured twice, no other teams have been shown more than once.

The likes of the Ravens, Browns, Bengals, Texans, Dolphins, Jets, Falcons, Raiders and Buccaneers have all appeared, with mixed playing results following the broadcasts.
More recently the omens have been good for being the featured team on Hard Knocks, with 11 of the last 13 teams to be shown improving their record from the previous season.
Cleveland went from a winless 0-16 campaign in 2017 to a 7-8-1 record after a Hard Knocks appearance, while the Raiders went from 4-12 to 7-9 and both the Rams and Chargers won two more games after they were shown together in 2020 as both moved to Los Angeles.
Dallas even managed to win their division last year with a 12-5 record after a 6-10 effort before their Hard Knocks show, and with just three wins last season odds are Detroit will also enjoy an uplift.
READ MORE: Detroit chosen to stage 2024 NFL Draft

    More Articles