Inside the Leaguewide Fight Over the Tush Push
Welcome to the NFL’s annual league meeting, where the drama is as rich as the setting at Palm Beach’s luxurious Breakers hotel. This year, the buzzword is “tush push,” a play that has sparked a heated debate among NFL teams, coaches, and executives. The meeting kicked off with a season review session, featuring a delightful panel of four Florida grade-schoolers interviewed by NFL Network’s Steve Wyche. The kids, whose teacher was being honored for her innovative NFL-inspired curriculum, were asked how they would make football more fun. Eleven-year-old Chase, sporting a Ja’Marr Chase jersey, enthusiastically suggested, “More tush pushes!”
The room erupted in laughter, and the Philadelphia Eagles contingent waved in approval. This young fan’s comment highlighted the entertainment value of the tush push, a play that, despite its limited use—appearing in just 0.28% of total plays last season—has become a hot topic. The potential prohibition of the tush push dominated discussions, even overshadowing a rules proposal that would alter the kickoff, affecting 28 times more plays.
The Green Bay Packers proposed a 10-yard penalty for immediately pushing the player who takes the snap, but the proposal was tabled after a back-and-forth debate. The word “immediately” in the phrase “immediately at the snap” was a point of contention. “It’s a layered conversation,” said one NFL team source, acknowledging that the rule had competitive implications targeting the Eagles’ success.
Panthers head coach Dave Canales weighed in, saying, “If it’s a competitive conversation, the Eagles just coach it better than the rest of us. So I don’t want to take away a competitive advantage from the team that figured out how to have the quarterback sneak [be] so effective.”
Two sources revealed that clubs were split, with exactly 16 in favor of Green Bay’s proposal. The Packers plan to rewrite the proposal to prohibit all pushing of the runner ahead of the next league meeting in May, hoping to gain the support of eight more clubs. The revised proposal will likely be broader and less targeted at Philadelphia and Buffalo, the only two teams that ran a push sneak more than five times last season.
One source in the room questioned the focus on the tush push, saying, “How many times did the pushing even make a difference last year? Once or twice, and the teams were less successful than they were on traditional sneaks. It was less about competitive edge than it was about health stuff. Why was this specific thing the most interesting?”
The debate underscored the importance of how a rule is presented to earn a three-quarters NFL majority. Player safety became a prevailing argument for banning the play, but the lack of injury data led some clubs to withhold support. One general manager called the proposal “sour grapes” because the Packers lost twice to the Eagles in 2024, and the Eagles excelled at the play.
Sean McDermott, Bills head coach and competition committee member, emphasized the need for solution-oriented discussions. “Usually, when there’s proposals written up, you have people who don’t like how they’re written,” he said. “So the hard thing is, hey, why don’t you just sit down and write the proposals if you have a better idea?”
Meanwhile, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni, working with GM Howie Roseman and assistant GM Jon Ferrari, engaged in conversations with other coaches. Former Eagles offensive coordinator and Saints head coach Kellen Moore, who called the play in Super Bowl LIX, supported Sirianni, saying, “Other teams have tried it and haven’t had as much success. Jalen [Hurts], the offensive line of Philly, they’ve been committed to it. And so it’s an investment thing.”
Despite Philadelphia’s advocacy, half of the league favored eliminating the play. Outgoing Packers president Mark Murphy cited player safety as the primary reason for the proposal. The league’s chief medical officer, Dr. Allen Sills, presented injury risk data, but some questioned its subjectivity.
- Player safety was a key argument for banning the play.
- Lack of injury data led some clubs to withhold support.
- The proposal was tabled for further discussion in May.
Murphy acknowledged the need for consistency in the rulebook, suggesting a return to the 2004 language that prohibited pushing. “Green Bay asked, ‘Could we go back and talk about reintroducing the 2004 language, study it, understand it and talk about it again when we get to May?'”
As the debate continues, the NFL community remains divided. The Packers, who used a version of the push sneak with tight end Tucker Kraft, achieved a 100% conversion rate. Yet, Murphy insists the proposal isn’t about one team’s success.
In the end, the conversation around the tush push highlights the complexities of rule changes in the NFL. As the league prepares for its next meeting in May, the debate over this controversial play is far from over.
Originally Written by: Kalyn Kahler
