The third edition of “Hard Knocks: In Season,” HBO’s sister docu-series to its NFL training camp hit, debuted Tuesday night, giving fans a close look at the Miami Dolphins.
Unlike the 2021 Indianapolis Colts and the 2022 Arizona Cardinals, the past two subjects of the series, the Dolphins seem poised to not only make the playoffs but go on a deep postseason run.
Plus, Miami has a compelling cast of characters that avid NFL fans probably already know well — head coach Mike McDaniel, quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, wide receiver Tyreek Hill and cornerback Jalen Ramsey just to name a few.
Sure enough, the first episode of “Hard Knocks: In Season with the Miami Dolphins” showcased some of those personalities to the delight of NFL fans.
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Let’s dive into some of the best moments from the episode.
“No peace signs”
Hill is arguably the fastest player in the entire NFL, a big reason why he is its leading receiver and potentially its MVP this season. He’s also known for throwing up the peace sign to defenders he leaves in the dust on his way to the end zone — a practice that has sometimes gotten him penalized and fined, including earlier this season.
Before the Dolphins faced the Raiders on Sunday, “Hard Knocks” cameras caught referee Bill Vinovich asking Hill to avoid any peace signs.
“No peace signs, please? I don’t want to have to make any decisions [to throw a flag],” Vinovich says in the clip.
“I’m spreading world peace!” Hill responds.
“I’m not f—— changing”
McDaniel’s first speech in front of the “Hard Knocks” cameras made one thing clear — he is not changing his approach due to the added exposure, and his team should not either.
“So s—- gonna get weird,” McDaniel said. “Who cares? I’m excited for what needs to be told about this team, the journey that we’ve taken together since the first day, April 17th, of this season. I’m excited that the world is going to find out what we’ve built together each and every day. … That was the journey, and we haven’t even gotten to the best part yet.”
“The best part’s f—— today.”
Tua vs. “Maxx Crosby”
How do you prepare your quarterback to face one of the most fearsome pass-rushers in the league? For McDaniel and Tagovailoa, it means putting a 98 jersey on a practice squad linebacker and have him mimic Maxx Crosby‘s habit of annoying the quarterback after each play.
Tagovailoa even coached the Crosby stand-in on how to best annoy him.
Down go the Nachos!
Sometimes, celebrating a great play by your husband can have unintended consequences. Keeta Vaccaro Hill found that out the hard way when, after throwing her hands up in response to a great play by Tyreek, she unintentionally tipped the nachos of the fan behind her, causing them to spill on her.
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