Buccaneers to appear on the 2017 season of ‘Hard Knocks’

The Buccaneers announced on Wednesday they would be HBO’s Hard Knocks team for the 2017 season. The show will begin on August 8, and conclude on September 5, according to the team.

GM Jason Licht and head coach Dirk Koetter will be on hand for the announcement.

“A tremendous amount of hard work goes on behind the scenes to prepare for an NFL season and HARD KNOCKS does a great job every year of giving the fans the type of unprecedented access that only NFL Films can provide,” Buccaneers General Manager Jason Licht said. “Our fans will get to know our players, coaches and support staff like never before.”

Licht discussed the show Monday when he was asked whether or not it would be a distraction if the team was indeed selected.

“In terms of being a distraction, I think we’re wired to where we would be able to minimize that,” he said. “Dirk [Koetter] has been through it. Mike Smith has been through it and I’ve heard positive things from them.”

Licht added that he was confident in the maturity of the team, and felt good about the players. “I know we have some great personalities on our team starting with Jameis [Winston], Gerald [McCoy], the list goes on and on, [linebacker] Kwon [Alexander].”

Jameis Winston said on Monday that Hard Knocks wouldn’t change what the Bucs do, but rather show how the team operates:

Head coach Dirk Koetter was confident in having the Hard Knocks crew around his team.

“We have multiple coaches who have prior experience with Hard Knocks, so I have a good understanding and appreciation for how HBO and NFL FILMS work with the players and coaches to document all that goes on in preparation for the upcoming season,” Koetter said.

“It will be good to give our fans that rare opportunity to see just how much work our entire organization is putting in to prepare for this season,” he added.

There were eight teams that were eligible to be 2017’s showcase on Hard Knocks. The Bears, Bucs, Browns, Colts, Eagles, Ravens, Saints, and Titans were all options under the league’s parameters. Teams with a new head coach in place, a playoff berth in the past two seasons, or appearing on Hard Knocks in the past 10 seasons are ineligible.

Hard Knocks was first broadcast in 2001. Last season, Jeff Fisher and the Rams didn’t give us a very entertaining show outside of some 7-9 bulls**t.

The Buccaneers will be the second team from the NFC South to be featured on the show, after the Falcons were featured in 2014. They’ll be the 11th team to be featured on the show, in its 13th season.