The NFL either truly despises the New York Giants or believes in redemption stories. For Big Blue Nation, here's to hoping it's the latter.
The league announced the G-Men, along with their fellow NFC East rivals, will be making another appearance on HBO's documentary series, Hard Knocks. Many fans still have a sour taste in their mouth when thinking about their last appearance on Hard Knocks last offseason. Their blunders were aired out like dirty laundry and put on camera for the entire world to see, and as predicted, it ended incredibly poorly... like they ruined it for everyone poorly. It was as embarrassing as it could get.
Fortunately, the cameras won’t be rolling during the offseason. This version of the series is the in-season edition, which debuted last year with the AFC North as the guinea pig (Jameis Winston knows a thing or two about that). Hard Knocks: In Season returns this December and shifts the focus to life during the actual grind of the regular season — mainly the last stretch of the season where the stakes are even higher.
HBO just gave Joe Schoen the ultimate chance at redemption
When Joe Schoen isn't on camera convincing his boss and fellow front office execs Saquon Barkley isn't worth a new deal, he's actually a pretty good general manager. Sure, he's had his misfires, but stick around long enough and even the best GMs have their moments. Overall, he's proven he's a guy who will learn from his mistakes and that he's a better front-office exec than people give him credit for.
Look no further than last year's draft. He's got a keen eye for talent. Malik Nabers, Tyler Nubin, Theo Johnson, Tyrone Tracy Jr., and Dru Phillips all figure to be starters in 2025. That's an incredible batting average, and one that likely earned him another year in the GM seat.
Throw in the hype and promise of the 2025 class and he just might prove to everyone in the league he's here to stay.
So yes, the abysmal appearance on Hard Knocks: Offseason was one to forget. But the in-season version gives him an opportunity to learn from past mistakes and self-correct. This is a much-improved football team. Schoen has added Paulson Adebo, Jevon Holland, Russell Wilson, Abdul Carter, and Jaxson Dart to a team hungry to put the worst season in franchise history behind them.
Now the cameras are back on, and so is the pressure. But this time, Schoen’s not fumbling a Barkley debate on national TV — he’s trying to guide a reloaded roster through a brutal schedule with a camera crew documenting. The redemption arc is there. All he has to do is not screw up like last time. No pressure, right?