Lions head coach Matt Patricia said last month that he thought Raiders head coach Jon Gruden “is an excellent choice” to appear on HBO’s Hard Knocks this summer.
The Raiders, like the Lions, are one of five teams who can be forced into doing the show and Gruden has television experience, but it didn’t sound like he’s itching to get back in front of the cameras when he was asked about Patricia’s comment on Thursday. He was willing to return Patricia’s favor by making a suggestion of his own to producers.
“Appreciate Matt Patricia, my friend, offering that up to me,” Gruden said, via NBC Sports Bay Area. “That beard that Patricia has, he’s going to be a star. I mean he’s going to be one of the future television stars. I’d be surprised if Monday Night Football doesn’t put him upstairs in the future. ... Patricia is going to do a great job ... on Hard Knocks.”
With 2019 set to be their final year in Oakland and the potential of three first-round picks joining the voluble Gruden at camp in Napa, the Raiders may be a more appealing choice for HBO than several weeks of gazing at Patricia’s facial hair.