Redskins eligible for HBO’s Hard Knocks

Could HBO’s “Hard Knocks” be coming to Richmond and Ashburn this summer? 

The Washington Redskins are one of six teams who could be forced to participate in the network’s documentary series.

If a team does not volunteer to be featured on the show, the NFL can mandate a team participates as long as they don’t have a first-year head coach, haven’t made the playoffs in the last two years or haven’t been on “Hard Knocks” in the past 10 years. 

The Redskins tick all three boxes. Jay Gruden is entering his fifth year as the team’s coach. Washington last made the playoffs during the 2015 season. And they’ve never been the main team featured. 

Besides the Redskins, the following teams are eligible: the Baltimore Ravens, the San Francisco 49ers, the Denver Broncos, the Los Angeles Chargers and the Cleveland Browns. 

In 2016, former Redskins general manager Scot McCloughan told NBC4 that the Redskins would never do “Hard Knocks” as long as Dan Snyder was the owner.

The Redskins made a brief cameo on the series in 2015 when they held joint practices with the Houston Texans. 

“Hard Knocks” follows a team throughout their training camp and preseason. Teams are generally against it, citing the revealing nature of the show and the “disruption” of all the cameras.