It’s time to bring an end to the “tush push.”
That’s according to one NFL team that officially proposed outlawing the controversial play, which is a style of quarterback sneak frequently run by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Troy Vincent, the league’s EVP of football operations, confirmed to NFL Media that a team submitted an anonymous proposal for the tush push to be banned. The Athletic reported the Green Bay Packers were the ones behind the proposal.
The tush push describes a formation used in short-yardage scenarios in which two offensive players line up behind the quarterback, then push him forward once he snaps the ball.
It is most synonymous with the Eagles, whose reliance on the play is a major reason why quarterback Jalen Hurts has scored at least 13 rushing touchdowns in each of the last three seasons.
The proposal will be reviewed at next month’s annual league meeting, with 24 teams needing to vote in favor of banning the tush push for it to happen. Last March, NFL teams voted unanimously to ban the hip-drop tackle with player safety in mind.
“A year ago, we felt like let’s just focus in on the hip-drop tackle, and the tush push, just say, hey, the Philadelphia Eagles, they just do it better than everybody else,” Vincent told NFL Media.
“But there are some concerns. Our health and safety committee has laid that out today with a brief conversation on the injury report. There’s some challenges, some concerns that they’ll share with the broader group tomorrow. But the tush push will become a topic of discussion moving into March.”
In 2023, Giants center John Michael Schmitz and tight end Daniel Bellinger were both injured on the same play when they ran the tush push.
Thanks to one of the NFL’s best offensive lines and the hulking Hurts, who weighs 223 pounds, Philadelphia boasts the personnel to run the tush push at extreme efficiency.
In the NFC Championship Game, the Washington Commanders committed back-to-back encroachment penalties, and then were called offside, in anticipation of Philadelphia running the tush push at the goal line. Hurts ultimately scored on the play.
The play is also referred to as the “Brotherly Shove,” a reference to Philadelphia being nicknamed the City of Brotherly Love.
The Buffalo Bills, too, run a version of the tush push with quarterback Josh Allen, who has at least 12 rushing touchdowns in each of the last two seasons.