Is ‘Hard Knocks’ appearance a bad sign for the Cowboys?

The Dallas Cowboys are going to have more cameras around than usual during training camp this year, and that may be a cause for concern for superstitious fans.

The NFL announced on Friday that the Cowboys have been chosen to appear on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” this year. The series will premiere on Aug. 10 and run for five episodes.

Teams typically are not thrilled to appear on “Hard Knocks,” as the added attention can create a distraction from preparing for the season. It’s unclear how Jerry Jones will feel about having HBO around as Dak Prescott works his way back from a major injury and the Cowboys look to rebound from a 6-10 season. Should he be worried?

This will be the Cowboys’ third appearance on “Hard Knocks.” The first time was in 2002, and they went 5-11 that year. The second time was in 2008. While Dallas had a winning record of 9-7 that season, they still missed the playoffs. As Dov Kleiman notes, only five teams that were featured on “Hard Knocks” have reached the postseason since the show began in 2001. Three of those teams won a playoff game.

The #Cowboys also appeared on Hard Knocks in 2008, also missed the playoffs with a 9-7 record.

Overall, since Hard Knocks started in 2001, only 5 teams made the playoffs and only 3 of those won a playoff game the season they featured on the show. None made the Super Bowl.

— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) July 2, 2021

That’s not a good sign, though it should be noted that teams that have made the playoffs the previous two seasons cannot be chosen for “Hard Knocks.” That’s why there are rarely good teams featured on the show.

The Los Angeles Rams were chosen for “Hard Knocks” last year, and head coach Sean McVay was not shy with expressing his feelings about it.