Giants Could Be Forced To Appear On HBO's 'Hard Knocks'
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The powers that be in East Rutherford don't care much for participating in HBO's training camp reality series "Hard Knocks."
But they might not have a choice.
The New York Giants are among the teams that could be forced to do the show this year if no franchise volunteers. The NFL passed a measure in October that said the league could pick the franchise that stars on "Hard Knocks" if there are no willing participants, with a few exceptions.
A club would be exempt if:
-- it has a first-year head coach;
-- it appeared on the show within the past 10 years;
-- it made the playoffs in one of the past two seasons.
The NFL's official website crunched the numbers and determined eight teams would fit the criteria: the Giants, Arizona Cardinals, Buffalo Bills, Chicago Bears, Jacksonville Jaguars, Oakland Raiders, Pittsburgh Steelers and St. Louis Rams.
In 2010, Giants co-owner John Mara told the New York Daily News that his team would be on the show "when I'm next to my father in Gates of Heaven cemetery."
Fellow co-owner Steve Tisch has also slammed "Hard Knocks."
"I don't think it brings anything to the team," Tisch told TMZ. "It's a bit of a distraction, and I think it's sort of misleading for the players."
Seven of the NFL's 32 teams have appeared on the show, including the New York Jets in 2010.
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