It feels incredibly soft to ban the tush push.
There was nothing inherently illegal in the play made famous by the Philadelphia Eagles. But during the owners’ meetings on Wednesday, the once-tabled issue appears close to being outlawed by a vote from the majority of NFL teams.
Sure, the tush push is a little bit of a gimmick. There’s no debating that. It’s certainly gotten to the point where you groan audibly when you see them lining up to attempt it. But it’s not even as if the Eagles found a loophole in the rules. It’s practically a glorified quarterback sneak that they have executed to perfection over the last handful of seasons.
Sure, there’s also an injury risk with the tush push. You’re practically taking the quarterback’s full body and mashing his head from behind into a vicious pile of offensive and defensive linemen in the trenches. But let’s not act like Jalen Hurts isn’t a big enough or athletic enough quarterback to pick these first downs up on his legs the good old-fashioned way. He squats 600 pounds. He can move the sticks even without players shoving him in the back.
Traditionally, we do not see NFL rules get changed like this unless there’s a serious risk of injury. We haven’t seen an injury with the tush push, as Hurts has remained healthy despite the perceived risk of the play. It’s not like this is just Hurts, either.
The Eagles were the best team in the NFL at quarterback sneaks with Carson Wentz under center. They have always been an organization that is aggressive in short-yardage situations and just so happened to find a way to execute those to near perfection.
Not to mention, this debate became even funnier when Jason Kelce retired. The future Hall of Fame center was believed to be the backbone behind the success of the tush push. When he retired, many thought that Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni would not be able to exploit the play call as much as he did before. Nope. Cam Jurgens took the torch and did not look back.
Oh yeah, having that Saquon Barkley guy in the backfield helps things, too.
Since the Eagles popularized the now-infamous play in 2022, the success rate has actually tapered. It was 90 percent effective in 2022 when it was rolled out. In 2024, it was 82.4 percent effective. It’s still bizarre to think that a fancy quarterback sneak could be successful eight out of 10 times, but the Eagles have mastered that play, and opposing teams have struggled to innovate a way to defend it.
The Eagles are Super Bowl champions. But they didn’t win the Super Bowl just because of this one play. Of course, they have the best backfield in football with Hurts and Barkley being able to make plays on their legs. But let’s not forget about A.J. Brown and Heisman winner DeVonta Smith reeling in touchdown passes. And that defense is the real deal.
Philly fans will have a right to be pissed off if this rule is outlawed.
