Jalen Hurts (pictured) and the Philadelphia Eagles have revitalized the “tush-push.” Photo courtesy of All-Pro Reels/Flickr
Ben Staker
Associate Sports Editor
In recent years, the Philadelphia Eagles have developed a controversial way of running their quarterback sneak play, so much so that many are calling for it to be banned.
The Philadelphia Eagles have pioneered a quarterback sneak play that has been deemed the “tush-push.” This play involves the quarterback getting under center, typically with five to seven down linemen and the rest of the players lined up in the backfield. After the ball is snapped, the quarterback starts pushing into his lineman and the players behind him start to push him as well.
This new style of running a quarterback sneak has been successful for most teams, but none more than the Eagles. The reason that some people want this play to be banned is its rugby-style nature. In rugby, there are often times when players are pushing each other the same way they do during this Eagles play, so people who want this play to be banned cite this as one of their main reasons. They don’t want to see football players play like it’s rugby.
Another reason why some people want this play banned is because they see the success the Eagles have had with it and realize their favorite team hasn’t. This argument stems from jealous fans, so it shouldn’t carry much weight when it comes to the debate about banning this play.
The other side of this argument is that the NFL should leave this play untouched and allow teams to make their own adjustments on how they want to stop the play. The Eagles aren’t the only team that is able to run this play, they just run it efficiently. People on this side of the argument feel it gives no unfair competitive advantage because of this. If the play is so unfair, then why doesn’t everyone just use it?
In my opinion, I think the NFL should make no changes regarding this play. As a non-eagles fan, I see both sides of the argument. On one hand, some fans don’t want the sport to turn into rugby, while others feel this play is perfectly fine. The way that I see it is everyone can run it the same way the Eagles do, so there should be no complaining about it. Some teams, fans, coaches, players, etc. need to accept the fact that the play is fair and adjustments just need to be made in order to stop it. I’m not a football guru, so I can’t perfectly explain what those adjustments need to be, but there’s a reason coaches and players are paid to do it. They simply need to figure it out.
