The Cardinals pioneered the idea of having cameras chronicle their regular season behind the scenes when they were the subject of the first season of Amazon’s “All Or Nothing,” which followed the Cardinals in the 2015 season before being released in the summer of 2016.
Now, they will again have cameras covering their season, but this time, the peek behind the curtain will be immediate.
The NFL and team announced Monday the Cardinals will be the 2022 team in "Hard Knocks: In Season," a spin-off of the usual training camp "Hard Knocks" produced by NFL Films and HBO. Last year, the Colts were the first team to take part in a regular-season version.
"Anytime you get a chance to highlight some of the great people we have in this building -- not just players, but coaches, staff -- and tell their stories, see a different side of them, I think it'll be really good TV," coach Kliff Kingsbury said.
"Talking with (Colts GM) Chris Ballard and what they went through last year, some positives, some negatives, but they were 3-5 when the show came and they won six out of seven and it felt like it was a shot in the arm having (the cameras) come in. We'll see."
The show will be available on HBO and stream on HBO Max, and will begin airing in November.
"Last season Hard Knocks made an unprecedented leap, documenting an NFL regular season in real time for the first time ever with the Indianapolis Colts," NFL Films vice president and senior coordinating producer Keith Cossrow said. "It was a vivid and illuminating look at the life of an NFL team.
"This season, we are eager to build on that success and go even further with one of the most exciting teams in the NFL. We can't wait to get to work in Arizona, and we thank Michael Bidwill, Steve Keim, coach (Kliff) Kingsbury and the entire Cardinals organization for this opportunity."
The episodes will begin after the suspension of DeAndre Hopkins has ended.
The "All or Nothing" season was the best Cardinals' year since their Super Bowl appearance, with the Cardinals posting a 13-3 regular-season record before losing in the NFC Championship game.
The original "Hard Knocks" series debuted in 2001 and features a team throughout training camp and the preseason. This season's regular "Hard Knocks" team is the Detroit Lions, with that arc debuting Aug. 9.
Tight end Zach Ertz was playing for the Eagles when they filmed "All or Nothing" during the 2019 season, and acknowledged players have "mixed emotions" with the cameras always on.
"Hopefully it won't distract anyone and we'll be the best versions of ourselves and win a lot of games," Ertz said.
When it was pointed out the Colts got hot once the cameras started filming last season, Ertz joked "if that's the recipe they can be here all year."
Kingsbury said coaches and players are going to "want to be on your A-game" with the cameras always following, and added that it might be a motivational tool "if you use it the right way."
As to who might be the star of the season?
"If they could go film Hop while he's suspended, that would be the best TV," Kingsbury deadpanned. "But I don't think they can."
