The Tush Push lives to fight another season.
In what’s become an annual tradition of frustration for defensive coordinators, NFL owners came just two votes shy of banning thePhiladelphia Eagles’notorious short-yardage cheat code. For now, Jalen Hurts and the Eagles get to keep bulldozing their way through defenses on 4th-and-1, but not without reigniting some serious debate around fairness and the future of the sport.
One of the most vocal critics? Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy, who’s gone on record-again-calling the play “not fair football.” His comments, resurfaced by Eagles Nation on social media, drew immediate fire from Philly fans and sparked fresh arguments over whether innovation should be punished when it’s this effective.
Meanwhile, Jason Kelce wasn’t sitting on the sidelines. The recently retired Eagles center jumped back into the fray, partnering with team owner Jeffrey Lurie in a full-court lobbying effort to save the play ahead of the vote. According to The New York Times’ Dianna Russini, Lurie worked the phones hard. His argument? Don’t outlaw creativity. “It’s the safest play in the history of the game,” he reportedly told the room of owners.
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Kelce added his own unique blend of credibility and charm to the conversation. Having run the Tush Push dozens of times before retiring, he told owners, “If I could run 60 Tush Pushes a game, I’d come back.” That quote, predictably, blew up on social media. When the vote fell short, the Eagles celebrated with a 22-minute Twitter highlight reel. Petty? Maybe. Effective? Absolutely.
Dungy wasn’t amused. In a later interview on The Rich Eisen Show, he doubled down, saying the play favors teams with specific physical personnel and undermines competitive balance. “Not every team has a 223-pound quarterback and that offensive line,” he said.
But there’s another side to that argument: no one’s stopping the other 31 teams from trying it. The Bills have come close, but no one’s done it like Philly. According to ESPN Stats & Info, the Eagles have run the Tush Push more than any team in the past three seasons-and converted it at a mind-bending 91.3% rate.
The debate over the play won’t disappear just because it survived this vote. If anything, it’s only getting louder. For now, the Eagles will keep pushing forward-literally-while the rest of the league tries to catch up or push back.
Let the offseason arguments begin. Again.
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