Dallas Cowboys fans will have special access this summer as “America’s Team” will be featured on HBO Sports’ and NFL Films’ docuseries Hard Knocks.
The popular documentary will focus on the Cowboys for its 20th-anniversary season in a five-episode series debuting on August 10. “The Cowboys are one of the most storied franchises in NFL history and a team that elicits strong reactions from fans around the world,” Ken Rodgers, Vice President, Senior Coordinating Producer at NFL Films, said in a statement Friday.
“Tens of millions of fans love them, but just as many people love to hate them. Either way, when the Cowboys show up people watch, which makes them perfect for Hard Knocks.” Friday’s announcement marks the third time Dallas will be featured, once in 2002 and 2008. The Cowboys finished at the bottom of the NFC East, going 5-11, in 2002. In their second Hard Knocks feature, Dallas missed the playoffs again, going 9-7.
According to the league, 10 of the last 12 teams featured on Hard Knocks have equaled or improved their win-loss record in the regular season — something the Cowboys are hoping to do under second-year coach Mike McCarthy and the return of quarterback Dak Prescott. Unlike past seasons, the first episode of this year’s Hard Knocks will air after the Cowboys play their first preseason game. Dallas is set to play the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Hall of Fame Game in Canton, Ohio, on Aug. 5.
Hard Knocks debuted in 2001 and first featured the Baltimore Ravens.
