Skip to main content
Advertising

News | Washington Commanders - Commanders.com

Gruden: Hard Knocks 'Kind Of Fun, Actually'

Hard-Knocks.jpg


Jay Gruden became an attractive head coaching candidate this offseason thanks to his rapport with the administration and results with the Bengals' offense in Cincinnati.

In three seasons with youngsters Andy Dalton, A.J. Green and Jermaine Gresham, he produced three playoff appearances, seven Pro Bowl honors and an offense that developed to one of the elite the NFL rankings.

Part of the intrigue surrounding the team, however, was generated by the HBO series Hard Knocks, which chronicled training camp for the Bengals in 2009 and again in 2013.

Each season, the series takes a detailed, behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of a team, highlighting vibrant personalities like Jay Gruden, who had a number of compelling segments.

Although teams have editorial say in the finished product, the show runs the risk of exposing too much about the inner workings of a team. That has been more than enough incentive for teams to steer clear of the camera crews in recent seasons.

Given the new administration in Washington, the question by some is whether or not that could usher in a new era of access, including a burgundy and gold feature on Hard Knocks.

In an exclusive interview with Redskins.com, Washington Redskins head coach Jay Gruden left the door open to the possibility.

"I don't know yet, I would have to talk that over with [Redskins general manager] Bruce [Allen] and [Redskins owner] Dan [Snyder]," Gruden said of the opportunity.

"It wasn't that big of a deal to have the crews in there. It was kind of fun actually.

"I would prefer not to have it, but if the NFL forced our hand, it wouldn't be the end of the world."

Far from a ringing endorsement, but certainly a possibility to keep an eye on under his direction.

For the 2014 campaign, at least, the Redskins would need to volunteer in order to be considered.

After the series struggled to find a host last season, NFL team owners voted to keep the show alive by compelling a team that had not made the playoffs in the last two seasons or hired a new head coach to be on the show.

Given the Redskins' playoff berth in 2012 and the offseason hire of Jay Gruden, the team is doubly exempt this season.

Eight teams, however, are not: the Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars, New York Giants, Oakland Raiders, Pittsburgh Steelers and St. Louis Rams.

During jay Gruden's time as head coach and general manager of the Florida Tuskers, he also granted access to the camera crews of CBS Sports for Outside the Huddle.

.

.

.

This article has been reproduced in a new format and may be missing content or contain faulty links. Please use the Contact Us link in our site footer to report an issue.
Advertising