Part of the reason Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles stormed their way to a Super Bowl victory was their ruthless red zone efficiency—and at the heart of that was the infamous “Tush Push.” It’s not flashy. It’s not complicated. It just works. The play has become Philly’s signature cheat code on 3rd-and-1 and 4th-and-short, helping extend drives with back-breaking consistency.
They gave it a name—the “Brotherly Shove”—gave it identity, and now they might have to give it up altogether—all because it’s apparently too effective for the rest of the league to stop it.
Now, predictably, the rest of the league is in meltdown mode. Instead of finding a way to stop it, they’re trying to ban it entirely at the league meetings. ESPN’s Kalyn Kahler reports: “The Green Bay Packers’ proposal to ban the push sneak, popularly known as the tush push, has support within the competition committee, a source with direct knowledge told ESPN on Sunday.”
So, to recap: the Eagles found a perfectly legal way to win short-yardage downs and the league’s response is… panic. Got it.
Banning the tush push would be one of the pettiest moves in modern football
This really doesn't feel like it's about safety. It’s not about the “spirit of the game.” It’s about teams getting embarrassed by a team that’s simply better at football in short-yardage situations. The league’s own numbers tell the story, as Kahler explained:
“The tush push has had critics around the league since the Eagles debuted the play during the 2022 season. Coaches, executives and players have argued it’s not a football play, with some comparing it to a rugby play.”
And yet: “Only two teams, Philadelphia and Buffalo, ran the push sneak more than five times last season. And of the 35,415 total plays last season, the push sneak accounted for only 101 of those plays, 0.28%.”
The fact that parts of the league are this up in arms over 101 plays, with zero injury data to back their outrage, is nothing short of ridiculous.
Just tell us you’re jealous and move on. The Packers—who lost twice to the Eagles last season—are now leading the charge to eliminate the one play they couldn’t stop. Make it make sense. It’s not enough that they couldn’t replicate it themselves, they want it gone entirely. And isn't what this is all about? Other teams not being able to replicate it properly?
This sets a bad precedent. If you start banning plays because one team runs them better than the rest of the league, what’s next? Ban Saquon Barkley's backward hurdle because the Jaguars couldn't stop that either?
The Eagles built a near-perfect QB sneak behind a historically dominant O-line and a weight-room warrior at quarterback. It hasn’t been unfair, unsafe, or unrecognizable. This is getting so out of hand.
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