Saints May Not Have to Deal With Hard Knocks

According to a Monday report, the Saints might not have to deal with Hard Knocks. However, no official announcement has been made.

Dennis Allen said in early June that he wouldn't like the idea of the Saints being on HBO's Hard Knocks, and he might get his wish. According to Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, the Jets are bracing for the involuntary assignment.

“I wouldn’t like it because I just want to focus on our football team and getting better, and any distractions are exactly that, distractions that keep you, ultimately, from reaching your goal," Allen told us back at the beginning of the month.

The Saints, Jets, Commanders, and Bears were all teams that fit the league's criteria to be on the program, with most all not having a desire to be on. The timing is also crazy, as the Lions were announced as the featured team last summer back in late March 2022. The Jets make sense, given their big addition of Aaron Rodgers and being put into the national spotlight with more prime time games this season.

Some new Saints players like Jamaal Williams and Derek Carr have been on Hard Knocks, and they told us that the experience wasn't that bad. They talked about the film crews being very understanding and fairly non-invasive. 

Hopefully, we'll find out sooner rather than later who ultimately gets to be the featured team. If New Orleans escapes selection this year, the best way to keep this from coming back next offseason is to make the playoffs.