“Hard Knocks” returned for Episode 2 on Tuesday night.
The HBO documentary series is following the Buffalo Bills this training camp. The episode started with a team meeting, where head coach Sean McDermott addressed the Bills.
“It reminds me of my junior year in high school,” McDermott said, before telling a story of his La Salle College High School days.
Then, one of his coaches came in a threw a chair at the wall. At the time, it worked.
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“To no surprise, Buffalo’s ‘Hard Knocks’ debut was blah,” Mike Florio of NBC Sports and Pro Football Talk wrote. “Nothing significant or memorable or remotely viral happened.”
“I was juiced, I was cranked up to go out and beat this team,” McDermott said.
He makes the point that the best thing he can be is consistent.
“You don’t need to do anything else tomorrow than what you’ve done every day at practice,” he tells them. “Trust it. You have what it takes.”
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The intro music rolls before narrator Liev Schreiber’s voice takes over.
“No team has better stories than the Buffalo Bills,” Schreiber said.
The stories of the episode start with Joe Andreessen, Buffalo Joe.
A montage of pictures of a young Buffalo Joe shows his Bills fandom from the start. Andreessen, who grew up in Lancaster and went to University at Buffalo, shares in a sit-down interview how he never stopped competing because he knew he had to “keep (his) foot on the pedal” to stay on the team.
A hard hit from Andreessen sends running back Ty Johnson to the ground and to need attention from athletic trainers, as offensive lineman Ryan Van Demark yells at the linebacker.
From there, the show begins the story of running back James Cook and his hold in.
“Cook wants his next (contract) to be a bit bigger,” Schreiber says, before a number of highlights of last season play.
The show captures Cook at team meetings, as general manager Brandon Beane explains how Cook is participating is everything besides practice.
“I love James so much,” Beane says. “… A lot of times these guys feel like your sons or your younger brothers, however you look at it.”
The scene moves quickly, cutting to a fan asking running back Ray Davis if he’s the No. 1 guy now. Davis laughs and says he likes Cook, but from there, the show continues following Davis.
It starts with Davis as a running back, his true job, before covering his foray into kicking, first at the Return of the Blue and Red practice.
From there, the show moves back to meetings as the Bills get ready for their first preseason contest. As it cuts back to the field, left tackle Dion Dawkins speculates on which rookies are nervous. He picks out two on the offensive line – T.J. Sanders and Deone Walker.
Then, the show is back to quarterback Josh Allen, rolling practice highlights from 11-on-11 play.
Day Two of Buffalo Bills Training Camp
Bills receiver K.J. Hamler runs after a catch during training camp practice on July 24 in Pittsford. Harry Scull Jr., Buffalo News
Allen stepping on wide receiver K.J. Hamler’s foot lends at the transition to Hamler’s story. Offensive coordinator Joe Brady says that Hamler brings energy and juice as he acts “like a pit bull.” Hamler harps a few times on how short he is as passes sail over him.
Hamler enamored audiences in Episode 1 with his tiny scooter, as everyone else on the team had large electric scooters. In Episode 2, he gets a new scooter.
“Said we gotta get him one for the grown folks,” Hamler says, as he unboxes his new scooter. The other one had gone missing.
“Probably a squirrel stole it,” Hamler says.
The light-hearted scene moves to a more somber topic – McDermott and his battle with skin cancer. He shows his bag of sunscreen before laying up for practice.
“This is like my lab coat,” McDermott says.
From there, McDermott calls Marv Levy on speaker phone to wish the legendary coach a happy birthday. Levy is quite grateful, ending with a “Go Bills, and carry on!”
“There we go – what a way to get our day started,” McDermott says.
McDermott heads out to practice, where Allen is shown being extremely detailed with his pass catchers, even though he won’t play in the first preseason game.
There’s a clip of Allen sitting down with "Bussin’ With The Boys" – a sizeable detour for the documentary.
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Back on the field, the spotlight turns to the quarterbacks room, and the battle for No. 2.
Then, it moves to safety Damar Hamlin.
Hamlin hosted a charity event last week in Rochester, one that Bills co-owner Terry Pegula attended. There, Pegula shared more of the story of the night co-owner and wife Kim Pegula went into cardiac arrest, and how it has tied him to Hamlin.
A quiet scene back in Hamlin’s room tells what he is looking to be now: “A fighter, a finisher and faithful,” Hamlin says.
In a poignant moment on the field, the Bills safety talks about how there’s so many hard things that come from the game of football, but he prays a thanks to God for all the good things the game has brought him.
The first game of the preseason is upon the Bills, so “Hard Knocks” cuts back to the full team, with different players packing up their dorm rooms.
In Orchard Park, former general manager Bill Polian visits with Terry Pegula and Beane.
Pegula is throwing “a little shindig” that night, with team minority owners Vince Carter and Jozy Altidore in attendance.
Pegula cheers with champagne, as the shot cuts to Andreessen at Fattey Beer in Lancaster with family and friends.
There is a montage of Bills fans that includes a reference to breast milk … we’ll let you watch for that one.
Back to the field, the preseason kicks off. Hamlin and Andreessen are the main subjects of the game, with a focus on the defense to start. The backup quarterbacks and field-goal kicking Ray Davis are woven back into the story as well. Finally, Hamler gets his full-circle moment, with a touchdown pass from quarterback Mike White, good for 39 yards on fourth down.
Running back Frank Gore Jr. gets a little shine as the Bills push for a comeback. But Gore is unable to score, his knee down too early, and the Bills fall to the Giants.
Schreiber ends the episode by saying one preseason loss may not seem big, but every day is a chance to work toward the ultimate happy ending.
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