Dolphins on 'Hard Knocks' Brightens the Spotlight on Joe Philbin, Ryan Tannehill

Never mind the added pressure from linebacker Karlos Dansby's Super Bowl prediction. The Dolphins will also be dealing with the pressure of HBO's cameras hovering and covering their training camp battles for five weeks in August 2012.

According to a report from NFL Network's Jeff Darlington, the Miami Dolphins will be featured in the TV series Hard Knocks, the network's sort-of-yearly look inside an NFL training camp.

The spotlight will be firmly on new Dolphins head coach Joe Philbin, formerly the offensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers, and it could also shine bright upon quarterback Ryan Tannehill and the ensuing camp battle at the most important position on the roster.

First, on Philbin: The Packers aren't exactly known for pulling back the proverbial green curtain on their football operations. For a former assistant to willingly put his team on the show is surprising, especially given the fact that owner Stephen Ross wanted to talk him out of it.

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Joe Philbin said owner Steve Ross wanted to talk him out of doing Hard Knocks, but Philbin felt it was better for the team to do it now.

— Omar Kelly (@OmarKelly) May 29, 2012"

Perhaps Ross was worried that the first-time head coach may have gotten himself in a little over his head. In fact, no other first-year head coach has ever partaken in the show, so we've never seen that dynamic or the effect it could have as one tries to establish themselves as the figurehead for the team.

Maybe Ross was concerned that the added pressure could present complications on the way to the eventual hopeful retirement of Tannehill's No. 17...not that there wasn't enough added pressure from that statement already.

Regardless, Philbin intimated that Ross was fully supportive of the decision for the team to be on Hard Knocks, adding, "Our owner Steve supported the decision, but in no way, shape or form forced us to make this decision," according to ESPN Milwaukee.

There's always concern that the added attention could bring about unwarranted criticism, but being on Hard Knocks may not all be bad news, anyway.

Some teams have struggled—namely the Dallas Cowboys (both times) and the Kansas City Chiefs—but the Cincinnati Bengals turned things around from one of the worst teams in '08 to a playoff team in '09, and the New York Jets used it as a springboard from one AFC Championship season in '09 to another in 2010.

One more interesting thing to watch will be Tannehill's relationship with Dolphins offensive coordinator Mike Sherman, who was Tannehill's head coach at Texas A&M and also has some NFL head coaching experience with the Packers.

The offense has been tailored to Tannehill, with a lot of carryover from the Aggies' playbook to the Dolphins'. While that won't help Tannehill's mechanics, it will make his transition to the playing field a bit easier.

The close relationship between Tannehill and Sherman could be frustrating to quarterbacks David Garrard and Matt Moore, who are also competing for starting jobs, and the relationship between the offensive coordinator and the three quarterbacks could be one of the primary storylines during camp. 

Fortunately, though, that storyline will have an ending within the show, as the Dolphins will know who their starter is at quarterback by August 24, the team's third preseason game, according to the Palm Beach Post.

Philbin said a few things about this being a football decision, one that he felt was best for the team, but what this decision says more than anything else is that Philbin is confident in the group of men he's assembled. Why else would he open the doors to the media and open the floodgates of pressure and criticism if things don't go beautifully?

But if Philbin's assessment of his roster is accurate, the Dolphins will rise to the challenge.

Erik Frenz is the AFC East lead blogger for Bleacher Report. Be sure to follow Erik on Twitter and '"like" the AFC East blog on Facebook to keep up with all the updates.