GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers are the team that proposed banning the Tush Push, but they aren’t alone in wanting to do away with the play.
“I feel where I’m most concerned is, even though there is not significant data out there to this point, my biggest concern is the health and safety of the players, first and foremost,” Buffalo Bills coach Scott McDermott told reporters at the NFL owners meetings in West Palm Beach, Fla., on Monday.
“It’s two things. It’s force – added force – No. 1, and then the posture of the players, being asked to execute that type of play, that’s where my concern comes in.”
A ban of the play, which the Philadelphia Eagles have run with great success the last three seasons behind a brawny offensive line and quarterback Jalen Hurts, will be among the rule changes teams will vote on on Tuesday. Green Bay’s proposal specifically would forbid “any offensive player from pushing a teammate who was lined up directly behind the snapper and receives the snap, immediately at the snap.”
It will take 24 votes to outlaw the play, or two-thirds of the teams.
“Really wasn’t a huge part of drafting the proposal or anything like that, but I’m very much in support of it,” Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said. “I think the medical professionals at the league have high concerns about putting players in positions that could lead to catastrophic injuries. I think this is something that needs to be discussed and we need to be proactive with it rather than be reactive on that.”
While team physicians might be concerned about the play, the two-thirds requirement will be a high bar to clear because there’s not a lot of data to support the concerns.
The perceived risk vs. the demonstrated risk was at the heart of the matter in a contentious debate on Monday.
The temperature in the room turned up Monday at the NFL owners’ meetings when discussion turned to the tush push.@AlbertBreer has details on the debate ahead of Tuesday’s league vote: https://t.co/TZQAE1zI0T
— The MMQB (@theMMQB) April 1, 2025
The data isn’t necessarily the point, though, critics of the play say.
“In terms of how much data, how much sample, I don’t think that’s really always the best way to go,” McDermott said. “There is other data out there that suggests when you’re in a posture like we’re talking about, that can lead to serious injury. I think being responsible and proactive in that regard is the right way to go.”
McDermott isn’t one of the sour-grapes teams that want to ban a play they can’t stop. Indeed, with quarterback Josh Allen, they have been one of the main beneficiaries.
The Eagles scored a touchdown in the Super Bowl against Andy Reid’s Kansas City Chiefs. On the play, Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones lined up sideways in a bizarro attempt to stop the play and wound up needing a neck massage on the sideline after the touchdown.
“Tough play to stop, but then you’re listening to that and the medical side and you probably could go either way with it,” Reid said. “But I would say if it’s putting a player in a bad position, then you probably have to do something about it. But if it’s not, it’s a heck of a play.”
Oddly, the play brought to prominence by the Eagles, also known as the Brotherly Shove, may be a little overrated. According to CBS Sports, the Eagles were successful on 39-of-48 Tush Pushes, of 81.3 percent. That’s incredible efficiency.
However, according to Pro Football Network, in the three seasons before the Tush Push, quarterback runs on third-and-1 and fourth-and-1, whether they were old-school sneaks, Tush Pushes or scrambles, were successful 83 percent of the time in 2019, 83 percent in 2020 and 82 percent in 2021. That’s right in line with the Brotherly Shove.
“I don’t think it’s like this super-unstoppable play,” Titans coach Brian Callahan told reporters on Monday. “I think one team’s really good at it because they have good players and the quarterback that squats 600 pounds.”
According to Stathead, on all third- and fourth-and-1 runs – not just Tush Pushes – the Eagles converted 73.0 percent of the time, which ranked 16th in the league. The Packers were ninth at 77.3 percent, with tight end Tucker Kraft going 3-of-3 on quarterback sneaks.