The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have planned a press conference for Wednesday for a “major announcement.” According to a report, the announcement will be that they’ve been chosen to be the featured team in HBO’s “Hard Knocks” series for the summer of 2017.
Here's hoping the #Buccaneers are ready for their close-up. They have been chosen for Hard Knocks. Official announcement coming Wednesday
— Roy Cummings (@RCummingsFHCN) April 18, 2017
The Bucs knew they’d be one of the teams considered this year, and team captain Jameis Winston has expressed the ultimate confidence that his team is ready for its national close-up.
“I know I’d embrace it,’’ quarterback Jameis Winston said Monday when players reported to off-season workouts (h/t Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times). “You’ve got to cherish the opportunity that you’ve got. The whole world gets to see how great of an organization this is and see the great people that we have within the organization. But our job is the play football. They add the glitz and the glamour and all that comes with it. It’s an amazing show, but we’ve got to play football. We’re out there doing it for the fans, we’re out there doing it for the city, and Hard Knocks – they’ll just show the whole world.”
Tampa Bay enters the 2017 season with high expectations. Since drafting Winston No. 1 overall in 2015, the team has gotten significantly better each year and added talent via free agency on both sides of the ball this offseason.
In particular, the addition of receiver DeSean Jackson should spark what’s already a very dangerous passing attack.
Gerald McCoy leads a scrappy defense that got incrementally better last year under the guidance of former Atlanta Falcons head coach Mike Smith.
If this report is true and the Bucs are the featured team on “Hard Knocks” this year, then we cannot wait to see what Dirk Koetter’s team looks like under the hood.