The Detroit Lions and many other teams have been playing a verbal game of hot potato with the topic of the HBO series Hard Knocks in recent weeks. Nobody wants to be on the series, yet everybody wants to see the other guy get their name called. But who in the end is close to having that be reality? An answer might have trickled out, and it's one that the Lions might not like to hear.

Recently, in a buzz piece off of the NFL Combine by Matt Maiocco and Scott Bair of NBC Sports, some light was shined on the issue of Hard Knocks for 2019 and an interesting hint was dropped. The Lions could be the featured team when all is said and done. Here's a look at what the duo heard regarding the NFL show of the summer:

"The 49ers and Raiders are eligible to be featured on “Hard Knocks,” the behind-the-scenes training camp series that airs on HBO. Coach Kyle Shanahan and GM John Lynch have been adamant that they do not want the 49ers to participate. The Raiders are not completely out of the picture, but one source said there’s an assumption the Detroit Lions will be the featured team this summer."

That news would likely be met with frustration on Detroit's end, given the team's brass recently compared the experience of being on the show to unwanted dental procedure, and explained it's actually a competitive disadvantage to be on the show, considering teams get an inside look at scouting them from the show, as the Lions focus on when they've got a Hard Knocks squad on the schedule.

"Lions want no part of "Hard Knocks," and hope Oakland is next. "I think Jon Gruden is an excellent choice for that show," Matt Patricia said. GM Bob Quinn said Lions and Patriots scouted teams on "Hard Knocks," and "That's why "nobody wants to do it," Quinn said," as shown in a Tweet by Larry Lage of The AP.

A while back, the NFL and HBO established a set of rules before agreeing to create and continue the annual late-summer television series. Those rules include three key exemptions for teams who do not wish to participate in Hard Knocks as follows:

1. If you have a first-year head coach, you are exempt. 2. If your team has made the playoffs in either of the past two seasons, you are exempt. 3. If your team has been the featured franchise in Hard Knocks during any of the last 10 years, you are exempt.

Naturally, the Lions don't meet any of those criteria for 2019, so they could be on the short list this offseason for the series, and might have to hope that the league finds them uninteresting and passes them over for another choice. That could be the case considering the other squads that could be on the list might simply be more compelling when all is said and done, as the team is lightly hinting toward and hoping with their commentary.

Typically used to highlight interesting teams which have made interesting changes or have interesting personalities on their rosters, Hard Knocks has been a late summer staple for football fans looking to get their fix. Most recently, the Cleveland Browns were featured on the show, and used to to their advantage to gain in popularity nationwide.

Obviously, HBO and the league could see more compelling stories elsewhere, possibly in Oakland or San Fransisco considering the storylines, teams and coaches in those spots. It's interesting that Detroit would be favored given those other spots and the storylines there, but the offseason is certainly young. If Detroit was chosen, they would have no choice but to participate in the show.

Detroit's feeling on the series might be ambivalent at best considering they like to operate in stealth mode. The good news for the Lions? Like plenty of other things, the league might simply elect to ignore them when all is said and done, even if it might not look like the case now.

Still, Lions fans could be getting a whole new look at their favorite team later on this year if this rumor proves to be true.