Sean McDermott spent much of the past year publicly questioning whether the tush push belonged in football, which made Sunday’s playoff finish feel rich with irony as Josh Allen used the very play to rescue the Buffalo Bills‘ season.
In a tense AFC Wild Card matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Buffalo turned to the controversial sneak at the moment it mattered most, sealing a 27-24 win and reopening a debate McDermott once hoped the league would end.
The Bills trailed late in the fourth quarter when Allen faced a critical fourth-and-1 just outside the goal line. Buffalo didn’t hesitate.
Allen followed his blockers, surged forward for a long gain, and moments later punched in the go-ahead touchdown. The drive flipped the game and ultimately sent the Bills into the divisional round.
It also placed McDermott back in the spotlight for his complicated relationship with the play. Less than a year earlier, the Bills coach had been one of the most vocal critics of the tush push, framing his concerns around player safety rather than competitive fairness.
“I feel where I’m most concerned is the health and safety of the players,” McDermott said in March 2025. “It’s the force and the posture of the players being asked to execute that type of play. That’s where my concern comes in.”
When principle meets playoff pressure
Sunday illustrated the difficult balance between philosophy and survival in January. McDermott may remain uneasy about the mechanics of the tush push, but he also understands the realities of playoff football.
With the season on the line, Buffalo leaned into its biggest advantage: a powerful quarterback who thrives in short-yardage chaos.
Allen delivered one of his most efficient performances of the season, completing 28 of 35 passes for 273 yards with a passing touchdown, while adding two rushing scores.
His composure late proved decisive after Jacksonville briefly took the lead on a Travis Etienne Jr. touchdown run earlier in the quarter.
The numbers supported McDermott‘s call, even if the optics invited criticism.
NFL Next Gen Stats showed the fourth-down sneak increased Buffalo‘s win probability from 27 percent to 77 percent, making it one of the most impactful quarterback sneaks recorded this postseason. From a purely strategic standpoint, the decision was hard to argue.
Veteran analyst Skip Bayless wasn’t convinced. He questioned McDermott‘s willingness to expose Allen, noting the quarterback’s accumulated bumps and bruises late in the season.
Bayless wrote on social media that Allen had dealt with issues to his foot, knee and hand, adding sarcastically that he was “cleared to play.”
A debate that isn’t going away
The moment carried added weight given Buffalo‘s stance at recent NFL owners’ meetings. The Bills were among the teams that supported proposals to restrict or ban the tush push, citing safety concerns.
McDermott, a member of the league’s competition committee, has consistently framed his opposition around long-term health risks, even as injury data remains limited.
That contradiction hasn’t been lost on observers. McDermott has acknowledged the tension, maintaining that he can both dislike the play and use it responsibly within the current rules.
Sunday offered a clear example of that reality. Buffalo didn’t spam the sneak, but when faced with a season-defining moment, it trusted Allen to execute it cleanly.
The Bills still needed their defense to finish the job. Rookie safety Cole Bishop intercepted Trevor Lawrence in the closing moments, extinguishing Jacksonville‘s final hope and allowing Buffalo to move on.
For McDermott, the win was both validation and complication. The tush push kept Buffalo alive, even as it underscored why the debate around the play isn’t ending anytime soon.
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