NFL owners table decision on whether to ban tush push but approve changes to kickoffs, overtime and replay reviews

By Ben Morse and Kyle Feldscher, CNN

(CNN) — Over recent years, the “tush push” has become a virtually unstoppable play for the Philadelphia Eagles.

The short-range play, which involves the whole offensive outfit pushing the quarterback a few yards, has been a key element in the Eagles’ success of late, helping the team win the Super Bowl this past season.

But could we have seen the last of the “Brotherly Shove”? The saga appears set to drag on.

The Green Bay Packers submitted a proposal to outlaw it on safety and competitiveness measures and NFL owners were expected to potentially take up the measure on Tuesday. But the league’s competition committee has decided to table the discussion for now.

The owners did approve changes to other key rules for the upcoming season.

The competition committee made the new kickoff format – in which the kicking and returning teams line up closer to one another, with the kick return men further back down the field – permanent. The committee also ruled that teams will now get the ball at the 35-yard line on a touchback.

The rules around the regular season overtime periods were also amended and will now echo the rules for the playoffs: Each team will get an opportunity to possess the ball, regardless of the outcome of the first drive. Previously, the game would end if a team scored a touchdown on the opening possession of overtime.

The league also expanded the instances in which instant replay can assist on-field officials in making a call.

In order to pass any motion, there needs to be a 75% majority in favor of the rule change among NFL owners, with 24 out of 32 votes needed.

What is the tush push?

The tush push rose to prominence a few years ago when the Eagles began deploying it in short-yardage situations.

It is a running play in which the ball is snapped to the quarterback, who then plunges forward into the offensive line. While the linemen push forward, the quarterback is then pushed from behind by a tight end and a running back, akin to a scrum in rugby.

The combined efforts usually result in a short-yardage gain that is enough for either a first down or a touchdown and the Eagles’ version of it is usually unstoppable.

Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts – who is the person with the ball in his hands and is being pushed from behind – has benefitted greatly from this play, with the majority of his 52 rushing touchdowns over the last four seasons coming from the tush push.

It became a key driving factor in the team reaching the Super Bowl two years ago and in their title success last season.

Like many other aspects across the NFL, other teams have tried to adopt the tush push with varying success, while the Eagles remain the masters of it.

Why do teams want it outlawed?

Despite the success of the tush push, it has become a controversial play, with some arguing it takes away competitiveness and makes football less exciting.

The play, which bares similarities to the old-school quarterback sneak used in the early days of football, has also led to safety concerns, with players pushing against one another with all their force in such close proximity.

Green Bay, which was beaten handily by the Eagles in the wild card round of the playoffs as Philadelphia went on to win Super Bowl LIX, was the team to table the motion to ban the play, with CEO and team president Mark Murphy saying the tush push was “bad for the game.”

“There is no skill involved and it is almost an automatic first down on plays of a yard or less,” Murphy added. “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 (in 1967).”

The rule proposal suggests that the rules change to “prohibit an offensive player from pushing a teammate who was lined up directly behind the snapper and receives the snap, immediately at the snap.”

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott – one of three coaches on the league’s competition committee – said that the Packers’ proposal “takes away the force” of the play, prioritizing player welfare.

“Traditional quarterback sneaks have been around for a long time,” he told reporters on Monday. “I think that’s the context of it that’s important. Then you know the pushing of it adds the force piece, which again is, I think that exponentially raises my concern.”

What have people said about the play?

As one of the more controversial plays in the NFL, public opinions appear divided on the future of the tush push.

While many coaches and front office members haven’t commented publicly on the matter, the ones who have appear divided on whether it should remain a key component of a coach’s playbook.

McDermott said that the discussion is primarily about the safety angle of the tush push, while also admitting that his team will continue to run a “form” of the play if it is not banned.

“Where I’m most concerned is, even though there’s not significant data out there to this point, my biggest concern is the health and safety of the players, first and foremost,” McDermott said. “It’s force, added force, and then the posture of the players, being asked to execute that type of play, that’s where my concern comes in.”

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said there wasn’t enough statistical evidence to suggest there was an injury concern related to the tush push, but said he and his peers are listening to the experts.

First-year New York Jets head coach Aaron Glenn admitted scheming against the tush push takes up a lot of his defensive planning.

“They’ve done a good job of creating a play that’s hard to stop. To me, when I go back now, I’m in my defensive coaching mentality, my job is to stop that play,” Glenn told reporters. “I think I will answer it like that. My job is to stop that play. So regardless, there’s going to be another play that going to come out. It’s going to be hard to stop. And our job is to stop that play.”

Conversely, there are others who are in support of the tush push remaining.

When the Packers first tabled their proposal, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni called it a “little unfair” that teams wanted to take away a play given they’d spent so many hours perfecting it.

“I almost feel a little insulted because we work so hard at that play,” he said. “The amount of things that we’ve looked into how to coach that play, the fundamentals. There’s a thousand plays out there, but it comes down to how you teach the fundamentals and how the players go through and do the fundamentals.”

Sirianni continued: “I can’t tell you how many times we practice the snap, we practice the play … the fact that it’s an automatic thing, we work really, really hard and our guys are talented at this play. It’s a little insulting to say we’re good at it so it’s automatic.”

Sirianni also told Mike Garafolo of NFL Network that he believes he has support from three former Eagles coaches who currently occupy head coaching positions around the league.

“All I will say about it is (Arizona Cardinals’ Jonathan) Gannon, (Indianapolis Colts’ Shane) Steichen and (New Orleans Saints’ Kellen) Moore better vote for it,” Sirianni told Garafolo.
“They are in the (head coach) position right now because of that play. So all three, I better have those three votes right there and the Eagles’ vote. I at least know we have four.”

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