How Yinz Feeling About the Steelers Being On Hard Knocks This Year?
Photo by Jeff Bryk.
For the first time in the show’s history, HBO’s Hard Knocks will follow an entire division for the ‘in-season’ portion of the show in 2024. Coincidentally, that division will be the AFC North. ‘Hard Knocks: In Season With the AFC North’ will begin on December 3rd, and will follow the Cleveland Browns, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, and Pittsburgh Steelers through the remainder of the season, and the playoffs.
I, of course, have a significant bias in this scenario, but I believe most real football fans would agree that the AFC North is one of the best divisions in the NFL. In fact, in 2023, the AFC North became the first division since 1935 to have every team finish the regular season above .500. Had the Bengals stayed healthy, I think each team may have made the playoffs, but such is life.
The AFC North rivalries aren’t what they used to be, but they’re still, consistently, some of the most competitive games each and every year. I also think that it’s no accident that three of our last five games of the 2024 season are against our division rivals, and will be featured on the show.
So, how should we, as Steelers fans, feel about this?
It’s easy to get excited about getting an inside look at the way the Steelers operate between games, but there are some potential downsides that are probably being overlooked. The Steelers are, arguably, the team that has experienced the most change this offseason, and we are not lacking in the storyline department. There’s the drama surrounding the acquisition of Russell Wilson, and the battle for the starting quarterback spot between him and Justin Fields, whom we also acquired this offseason. There’s also the acquisition of Patrick Queen, who we nabbed from the Baltimore Ravens, which I would think is something that will be brought up on Hard Knocks. We also brought in offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, who is coming off another subpar year as the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons. I could keep going, but I think I’ve covered the significant ones. My point is, there’s already going to be a media circus surrounding our team when the season kicks off in September. With the recent news that came out about us being featured on Hard Knocks, it seems like that circus is going to follow us around all year long, and get even worse in December when we’re, hopefully, battling for a playoff spot. There are a lot of young guys on this squad, and the thought of all of these distractions happening around them as they navigate life as a professional ball player gives me cause to pause.
With all that being said, I’m selfishly extremely excited to get an inside look at the team’s day-to-day functions. We just extended head coach Mike Tomlin’s contract, and most of us are aware of how entertaining he can be when the cameras are on him, and I have no doubt that ‘Hard Knocks: In Season With the AFC North’ will be no exception. Also, it will be super cool to get a glimpse into how the players talk and interact, especially with all the storylines I mentioned earlier. Think about it: the Steelers are going to have camera crews following them around all week long when we head to Baltimore for a battle with the Ravens on December 21st. Could we potentially get some unhinged Patrick Queen content that week? Hell, we got the Chiefs on Christmas Day. The reigning Super Bowl Champions, plus Taylor Swift in Pittsburgh, and there are going to be camera crews capturing every second of it. It’s exciting to think about.
Overall, I’m conflicted on how I feel about this. On one hand, I think it’ll be MASSIVELY entertaining, and if we do well, it will only boost our team’s popularity and ego (let’s face it, you don’t win a Lombardi without a big ego). On another hand, it could be a terrible distraction, and we could do horribly, and there will be a spotlight on the whole thing. And we thought Coach Tomlin’s seat was hot last year? So, I don’t know. What think yinz?
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