The Bears are set to give fans a look behind the scenes at training camp this season. The team announced on Thursday that they have been selected to star in this summer’s season of “Hard Knocks.”
“The 2024 training camp will be big for us in preparation for achieving our season goals and we look forward to bringing the fans at home along for the journey,” said GM Ryan Poles in a statement.
The Bears were one of the teams who could be forced to appear on the show if no other teams volunteered to be featured, and they clearly had the biggest storylines to follow with No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams.
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These are the criteria to be selected:
-Team does not have first-year head coach
-Team will not be featured on in-season version of show either this year or next year
-Team hasn't appeared on "Hard Knocks" in the last eight years
"The Chicago Bears have a talented roster, coaching staff and front office all determined to match the expectations of a hungry fanbase," said NFL Films senior director and supervising producer Shannon Furman in a statement. "We are thankful to the entire organization for opening their doors to us for what is sure to be an exciting training camp this summer.”
“Hard Knocks” is a show produced by HBO and NFL Films which follows a team throughout training camp, documenting both well-known stars with slo-mo highlight reels and fringe players working to make the 53-man roster. Fans also get a rare look into some players' personal lives as the cameras will follow some guys home after practice.
NFL
It will be the first time the Bears have ever appeared on the show.
"Hard Knocks" launched in 2001 by following the Ravens over the summer. In the years since, there have been two spinoffs of the popular show: one that follows a team over the second half of the regular season, and another that follows a team in the early stages of the offseason. Over the entire history of the show, "Hard Knocks" has won 18 Sports Emmys.
The Bears' season of "Hard Knocks" debuts on Aug. 6 at 8 p.m. CT.
