We've heard it suggested by fans, coaches and players that appearing on HBO's "Hard Knocks" is somehow a distraction for teams. That organizations that want to "focus on football" are better off avoiding the path of frivolous attention-seeking reality show stars.
The 2007 Kansas City Chiefs and 2008 Dallas Cowboys are usually provided as examples of teams that fell hard after appearing on the show.
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The reality, of course, is that showing up on "Hard Knocks" shouldn't make a difference to the bottom line. The numbers even support it. Bill Barnwell of Grantland.com looked through the history of the show and proved there is no curse.
The record of teams during the season before they appeared on "Hard Knocks": 57-55.
The record of the eight teams in the season during which they appeared on "Hard Knocks": 57-55.
Barnwell did notice one other trend in the show's history:
"There's no such thing as a 'Hard Knocks' curse," he writes. "If anything, the show itself has exhibited a curse of picking teams with awful quarterbacks in their recent past or immediate future. Fortunately, the Dolphins don't have to worry -- oh."