If you are paying attention, the news that the Dallas Cowboys will appear in HBO’s “Hard Knocks” for the third time is not surprising.

The Cowboys are eligible. You can criticize this organization because of its lack of field effectiveness, because Bourbon promoted the divorce of Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson, but in business, “Boys are first, and second place is never “can hear.

Jones is like the first responder to brand building, while other members of the NFL ran in the other direction, desperately escaping the glare of the sun.

Forbes’ recent NFL team valuation put the Cowboys among the best, with an estimated value of $5.7 billion, more than any other sports team in the world, let alone its peers.

Of course, whether there is “Hard Knocks” or not, this will not change, but Jones’ acceptance of the show is a small window that can explain why he is so successful in business.

Jeffrey Lurie and the Eagles were not financially harmed-for that matter, no NFL boss was harmed-but they are grateful for the league’s CIA or NSA-style mentality, they are bent on keeping secrets for protection Potential competitive advantage for everyone.

To be clear, the Hawks did not even appear in the 2021 “Hard Knocks”, which is the 16th incarnation of the show and has been losing momentum rapidly in recent years.

In the early days of the run, it was clear that, with the exception of the Cowboys (which appeared in two of the first four seasons), few organizations wanted any part of the “interruption” of the NFL movie boom microphone, so the league must make rules To ensure that there is a qualified team that must participate each year, if required to do so.

By 2013, the league announced that certain teams may be forced to participate in the absence of teams that voluntarily participate in the “Hard Knocks”. The choices this year and the Cowboys are the Arizona Cardinals, Carolina Panthers, Denver Broncos and New York Giants.

PhillyVoice contacted the league to confirm whether the team can still participate voluntarily, and no one seems to know, which basically highlights the inertia of the current process.

The Hawks received their release card based on two parts of the legislation-having a first-year head coach with Nick Siriani and entering the playoffs in at least one of the past two seasons (2019) . Another knockout has participated in the past 10 years. Lurie’s team has never participated in “Hard Knocks”, although they did participate in Amazon’s “All or Nothing”, which is a similar show that aired in 2019.

Three strikes and you are out. The appearance has never been considered because it is not necessary.

However, this is not some constitutional law. For the Eagles that are in transition, “hard knocking” would have been great. This team has changed from a big tent and a prime-time staple to an afterthought, only arranged in Two starring roles in 2020, this is a mandatory Thursday night game against the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Monday night against the Jones Cowboys, you guessed it.

The harsh reality there is that Philadelphia is hosted by Tom Brady and his nasty competitors.

Throughout the offseason, a consistent theme of national authorities around the Eagles is that they believe that the team will not become an important person in 2021. Most of these are related to Sirianni, the rookie head coach who performed well in the introduction of the Zoom Presser, and the first-year starting quarterback with Jalen Hurts’ pedigree in the second round of the draft.

“I think that’s almost the case,” admitted Newsday NFL columnist Bob Glauber. “…This is a coach and quarterback league. Regarding these two questions about the Eagles, I don’t think these questions will be answered positively until they can go out and prove that they can win the game and win the game. As one.”

The fastest path and the only real path to restore relevance in the NFL is to win-but it can be achieved by emphasizing that Sirianni is not some glorious cheerleader and Hurts is a legitimate prospect, not a real QB placeholder in 2022 To start. “Knock hard.”

It also has no disadvantages. No team has lost a game because of this performance.

Former NFL film producer Darren DeGaetano (Darren DeGaetano) participated in the Cowboys’ first two appearances on the show and explained the goals of the production.

“We have always tried to focus on the storyline of individual players,” De Gaetano said. “Long-shot rookie, popular veteran. [We] Always try not to show too many X and O. “

As with most successful shows, the target is the general audience.

“[We were] Attract a wider audience, not just football leaders,” De Gaetano pointed out. “Now, the team has the final say, so only what they want can come out. “

In the larger plan, “Hard Knocks” is not important. Professional sports are cyclical, and when the Hawks start to play better again and enter the playoffs, they will regain their prominence.

From then on, prime-time games will be back on track, and Lurie’s team will return to normal life, although failing to recognize the opportunity for a team that likes to see themselves as more innovative may even miss it. Consortium, but on the contrary, it is a very traditional one, and its default settings are often programmed for collective thinking.

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John McMullen is a writer for PhillyVoice.com, covering the Eagles and NFL for Sports Illustrated and JAKIB media. He is also the co-host of “Birds 365”, a daily streaming show covering the Eagles and NFL, and the host of “Extending the Play” at AM1490 in South Zeeland.You can contact him [email protected]

Follow John on Twitter: @JFMcMullen