National Football League

Broncos latest to pass on 'Hard Knocks'

Published May. 20, 2011 1:00 a.m. ET

foxsports

HBO's "Hard Knocks," which rode the profanity of New York Jets head coach Rex Ryan to record ratings last summer, was still searching Friday for an NFL team willing to sign up for this year's version, after a series of snubs.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Denver Broncos said this week that they would not be interested in serving as subjects for the training-camp reality show -- perhaps in part because there might not be a training camp.

With the NFL locking out its players, preparations for next season remain indefinitely delayed. Teams might not want to be subjected to the scrutiny of the HBO/NFL Films cameras if work at camp is compressed or rushed.

The Detroit Lions were reportedly the overwhelming choice of fans, but several of their players knew which side of the cameras they wanted to stay on.

"It's definitely a cool show to watch during camp -- everybody tries to get back to the hotel on Sundays to watch it," defensive lineman Cliff Avril told Mlive.com. "But I don't know if I want to be the guy they're talking bad about upstairs."

The Broncos were attractive because of quarterback Tim Tebow, but a spokesman told CBS Sports on Thursday that the team "would rely on other platforms." The Buccaneers "respectfully declined" Monday with a message on the team's Facebook page.