‘Hard Knocks’ is REALity TV

'Hard Knocks' wrapped up another season on HBO last night. I have not watched it yet. I have it on the DVR and will settle into my favorite chair tonight to view a show I thoroughly enjoy watching.

It's not the coaches swearing, the player scuffles or how fast professional football players play the game that make the show so great (you really don't get an accurate feel for just how fast things move on the field when watching games on TV). It's the authentic emotion and a peek into the inner-workings of a billion dollar business that make this must-watch television if you're a fan of the NFL.

Of course, seeing coaches get really pissed and getting glimpses of how millionaire footballers live is a perk, but it's not what makes 'Hard Knocks' what it is. There's nothing that will evoke unadulterated emotion like when a doctor tells a man who spent the last 15-20 years working his butt off to achieve a dream only to have his career in doubt after a devastating leg injury.

Coaches and general managers (who typically decide who is on the team) are tasked with telling 37 players that all of the hard work they put in was not good enough to make their team. Talk about a hard day's work! These coaches and GM's are paid very well to do this, but you can't discount the toll it takes on you to look another man in the face 30+ times and tell them, in as many words, that you weren't good enough after sacrificing their health and putting their bodies through a hellish 3-5 weeks.

It's not amusing. But it's pretty damn interesting.