The Tush Push is under the microscope again.
The Packers have proposed to ban Philadelphia’s controversial quarterback sneak, NFL executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent told reporters Monday.
The Tush Push is arguably the most controversial play in the NFL, especially since it has played a large role in the Eagles’ success during their Jalen Hurts era.
There has been some talk about a possible vote on banning the play last offseason, but the league ultimately passed on a vote.
The Athletic previously reported that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell had said he wanted the play to be banned for the 2024 season.
Well, the play did not end on the banned list and the Eagles ran it just as successfully even without Jason Kelce under center en route to their Super Bowl 2025 triumph.
Packers CEO Mark Murphy recently cited the ridiculousness of the Commanders repeatedly committing penalties in the NFC title game before the referees threatened that they would award the Eagles a touchdown if any more shenanigans happened.
“I am not a fan of this play. There is no skill involved and it is almost an automatic first down on plays of a yard or less. The series of plays with the Commanders jumping offsides in the NFC Championship Game to try to stop the play was ridiculous,” Murphy said in his monthly Q&A with fans on Feb. 1.
“The referee even threatened to give the Eagles an automatic touchdown if the Commanders did not stop it. I would like to see the league prohibit pushing or aiding the runner (QB) on this play. There used to be a rule prohibiting this, but it is no longer enforced because I believe it was thought to be too hard for the officials to see. The play is bad for the game, and we should go back to prohibiting the push of the runner. This would bring back the traditional QB sneak. That worked pretty well for Bart Starr and the Packers in the Ice Bowl.”
The Eagles eliminated the Packers 22-10 in the wild-card round in their first of four postseason triumphs.
Some of the criticism of the Tush Push has centered on whether it puts players at risk due to the violent nature of the play, but the NFL doesn’t have applicable data to make a decision on injuries alone.
“Question on the Tush Push play is whether it could be modified to keep some semblance of the play intact,” NFL.com’s Judy Battista reported. “The play is run so infrequently that there isn’t enough injury data for the league to push for a ban based on injuries alone.”
Others have argued whether or not it’s a true football play since it has more of rugby elements and regular rushing plays don’t include other players pushing the ball-carrier.
The counter-argument is that the Eagles are the only team that seemingly can run the play without any hiccups.
Whether you believe the referees gave the Bills a bad spot or not in the AFC Championship game, Buffalo could not convert a one-yard scramble with Josh Allen in a game-changing play.
The Eagles, with their Tush Push, almost never run into any issues.