Philadelphia Eagles "tush push" QB sneak
Sam Lutz/Kansas City Chiefs via AP
The NFL on Wednesday failed to get the votes needed to ban the Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterback sneak known as the “tush push.”
The play — which has multiple Eagles players pushing QB Jalen Hurts from behind — has been the subject of league-wide debate since its rise to prominence years prior. Some critics of the move deem it unfair since defensive players aren’t also allowed to push their own players, while others have claimed the play presents significant safety risks for the players involved. At the time of writing, no injuries have been reported as a result of the play.
Earlier in the offseason, owners were set to vote on banning the play. The Green Bay Packers and Buffalo Bills were the most vocal among the teams in favor of the ban. When it was clear there wasn’t support for the ban, the vote was tabled and rescheduled for the NFL owners meetings in Minneapolis, Minnesota. For the ban to go through, the league needed 75% of the teams — 24 out of 32 owners — to vote for it.
While it was initially believed the pro-ban teams had done enough lobbying to secure the necessary votes, they turned out to be just short.
According to The Athletic’s Dianna Russini, 10 teams voted against the Packers’ proposal to ban the play — meaning 22 voted in favor of it. The controversial play survived by just two votes.
Tabling discussions until May on the potential banning of the tush push signaled to some around the league that the play's days were numbered.
But the Eagles' work to campaign to keep the play pays off, as Green Bay's proposal failed to garner the 24 votes needed to pass. pic.twitter.com/22jhk4iSBP
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) May 21, 2025
Moments after the news broke, the Eagles’ official X/Twitter account posted a photo of the team lining up for the “tush push” against the Packers. Text above the image read, “Push on.”
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