Browns might be in line for reformatted Hard Knocks

In-season version of series will focus on an entire division in 2024, which puts the AFC North in play.

The Cleveland Browns will have several attractive storylines in the 2024 regular season.

The team is coming off a playoff appearance and has Super Bowl aspirations, has the reigning Defensive Player of the Year in Myles Garrett, a pair of players gaining international attention in tight end David Njoku and linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, and everyone will be watching to see how running back Nick Chubb recovers from a major knee injury that knocked him out of last season after only two games.

Cleveland also has an attractive schedule and plays in one of the league’s most competitive divisions in the AFC North.

It is that last part that could put the Browns, along with the Cincinnati Bengals, Pittsburgh Steelers, and Baltimore Ravens in the spotlight this fall as part of HBO’s revamped in-season version of Hard Knocks.

This fall, rather than focus on a single team, the in-season version will embrace an entire division, according to NFL’s Network’s Mike Garafolo:

The AFC North should be a strong candidate given that the division should be competitive, and the quarterback situation with each team is interesting as the Ravens have “MVP” Lamar Jackson; the Steelers signed Russell Wilson and traded for Justin Fields; and both the Bengals, with Joe Burrow, and the Browns, with Deshaun Watson, have their quarterbacks returning from injuries.

There will be some competition from other divisions, of course, most likely from the NFC East because there is nothing the networks love more than showcasing the Dallas Cowboys. But other than that, it is hard to make a case for another division being as strong as the AFC North.

The Browns were last part of Hard Knocks in 2018 and provided some memorable moments, including:

• Defensive end Carl Nassib attempting to explain compound interest to a group of disbelieving teammates
• Quarterback Tyrod Taylor having to explain how to run a proper practice to head coach Hue Jackson
• Offensive coordinator Todd Haley having to explain to head coach Hue Jackson the importance of having players available for practice
• Offensive line coach Bob Wylie explaining why stretching is over-rated
• The manufactured for TV “interest” in signing free agent wide receiver Dez Bryant

No word yet on when the NFL and HBO will announce which division will be featured this fall, but it wasn’t until late October of last year that they announced the Miami Dolphins were the chosen team, so it might be a while until a decision is made.