Indianapolis Colts: Next Hard Knocks Team
The NFL had a huge announcement last night that the critically acclaimed HBO series “Hard Knocks” will have a new twist to it this season; it will take place during the regular season.
The Indianapolis Colts will be the first NFL team to be a part of this new iteration of the show that will follow the team throughout the regular season, instead of only during train camps. The Colts have already had an interesting start to the season, and with the uncertainty of players who are vaccinated, this could be a very interesting watch.
It will be interesting to see how they decide to make this season different than any other, as the regular season is a completely different beast than training camp. The crew always makes it a captivating watch, so get your popcorn ready for every Wednesday night starting November 17.
No Shortage of Stories
The Dallas Cowboys’ “Hard Knocks” season that took place during training camp this season was a good insight into quarterback Dak Prescott, and that should happen here with new Colts quarterback Carson Wentz. He has an intriguing story that the camera crew can follow as he is trying to solidify his spot in the NFL as a starting quarterback after being benched last season by the Philadelphia Eagles after throwing 16 interceptions and getting sacked 50 times in just 12 games. A comeback storyline always makes people root for the player, and that’s what “Hard Knocks” can do here.
Another interesting storyline is what a lot of people seem to be interested in the Covid-19 vaccination. The Indianapolis Colts already had some drama as Wentz, center Ryan Kelly, and linebacker Darius Leonard were some of the notable players in the locker room that were not vaccinated as of the start of the regular season. Following that idea around to see if there is a rift between teammates and coaches could be an interesting dynamic.
Are the Colts an Interesting Enough Team?
That is definitely subjective, but seeing them prepare each week and taking a sneak peek behind the curtain could really be a fascinating idea during the regular season. This franchise has some notable names like Wentz, wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr, running back Jonathan Taylor, rookie defensive end Kwity Paye, and cornerback Xavier Rhodes to name a few, so they can really dive into the stars vs the players that are on the verge of either dressing on game day or even making the 53-man roster.
The Colts have enough personalities throughout their organization, and highlighting the relationship between head coach Frank Reich and Carson Wentz should be something that makes the show feel must watch throughout the season, as well as the team’s success (or lack thereof) throughout the season.
Conclusion
This was an excellent decision by whoever made it. I was always a fan of the “All or Nothing” series on Amazon Prime Video, but we never had the opportunity to essentially follow a team in real-time throughout the season. ‘Hard Knocks” is definitely a draw in itself, but adding to it a team with some stories and vaccination question marks will only make it more interesting throughout the show. It started to feel a little stale, and now the crew has changed it up, good on them for doing it, and thank you for adding more football content to digest.
