Jets to Star in HBO Reality Show "Hard Knocks"

HBO knows they have a TV star in Rex Ryan.

And they are pretty high on the Jets, too.

“After last year’s postseason run, this is certainly a championship-caliber team with big-name talent,” HBO president Ross Greenburg after announcing the Jets would be featured on this season’s "Hard Knocks."

“Get ready for some of Coach Ryan’s ‘blunt force trauma’ behind the scenes with this staff and this talent.”

This will be the sixth installment of the series which follows teams through camp. The Cincinnati Bengals were featured last summer.

The Jets seem perfect subjects, starting with the loquacious Ryan, a Baltimore assistant during the show's first season in 2001, and trash-talking linebacker Bart Scott. Quarterback Mark Sanchez, cornerback Darrelle Revis and newly signed LaDainian Tomlinson also are sure to get plenty of camera time.

“We are committed to being an organization that is open and accessible,” Jets chairman and CEO Woody Johnson said. “’Hard Knocks’ serves as a tremendous vehicle for fans everywhere to receive unprecedented access and a fascinating behind-the-scenes look as we prepare for the 2010 season. HBO and NFL Films have an award-winning track record and we are excited about working with them.”

A 24-person NFL Films crew will live at the Jets’ training camp in Cortland, shooting more than 1,000 hours of video. Camera and sound crews will be given access to the players’ and coaches’ meeting rooms, training rooms, dormitories and practice fields.

"We're going to be ourselves. We won't hide anything," Ryan told newyorkjets.com. "All we want to do is portray who we are and let the whole country see why I brag about our players and assistant coaches."

"Hard Knocks" debuted with the Baltimore Ravens in 2001, when Ryan was on their defensive staff. The show highlighted the Dallas Cowboys in 2002, then vanished until it resumed with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2007. The Cowboys were featured in 2008 and the Bengals last year.

This should be really interesting.

Rex Ryan: Unplugged, if you will. This will be good for the Jets to get more exposure to fans throughout the country and to enable us to find out what goes on behind the scenes and in practice to get Gang Green ready for the season.

I know I am excited about it. As T.O. says "Get your popcorn ready, it's gunna be a show."