NFL fans have reignited calls for the tush push to be banned after the Eagles benefitted from the controversial play against the Chiefs.
Philadelphia beat Kansas City 20-17 in their Super Bowl rematch, and used the polarizing play several times – including as Jalen Hurts punched in a fourth quarter touchdown.
But fans online noticed movement across the offensive line before several of Philly’s uses of the play at Arrowhead Stadium – and urged the league to get rid of it for good.
‘The Eagles commit about 5 penalties during a Tush Push, and the NFL just doesn’t call them. Center is offsides, guards false start. Ban the play,’ one said.
‘Ban the Tush Push. It is illegal,’ another said.
‘It’s a false start. Every single time. If you won’t take the play away, at least officiate it appropriately. False start on both the LG [left guard, Landon Dickeron] and RG [right guard, Tyler Steen] on this Eagles touchdown,’ a third wrote, sharing a video of Hurts’ late touchdown dive.
Fans – and ex-players – spotted illegal movement across the Eagles offensive line during their use of the tush push on Sunday
Eagles guards Landon Dickeron and Tyler Steen appeared to commit a false start before Hurts’ score
And it wasn’t just fans that had criticism of how the play was (or wasn’t) officiated on Sunday.
During FOX’s broadcast of the game, Tom Brady said: ‘The Brotherly Shove is awfully impossible to stop, and when you get a false start penalty like that, it’s even harder to stop, and they missed that one pretty bad.’
Former linebacker and ‘Bussin’ With the Boys’ co-host Will Compton said: ‘Eagles false start every time on that tush push.’
And even Fox’s rules analyst (and former ref) Dean Blandino sounded dejected.
‘I am done with the tush push guys. It’s a hard play to officiate,’ he said after another use of the play in a short-yardage situation.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid also looked befuddled after one use of the play that the Eagles were not penalized for.
The play has been frequently and successfully used by the Eagles since they began employing it several years ago.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid is seen berating a referee during the Chiefs’ loss on Sunday
Tom Brady also criticized the officiating of the play and said a false start should have been called
The Eagles ultimately left Arrowhead Stadium with a 2-0 record after their 20-17 win
According to ESPN, 65 of the 101 tush push calls last season came from the Eagles and Bills combined, and Philly scored 27 touchdowns using it across the 2022-2024 seasons.
That led to the Packers proposing to outlaw the play during the offseason, as they cited pace of play and player safety as reasons for a ban (there is currently not conclusive data that the play leads to injuries).
The proposal aimed to prohibit ‘an offensive player from pushing, pulling, lifting or assisting the runner except by individually blocking opponents for him.’
Green Bay also called for a loss of 10 yards for violation of the potential rule.
The proposal needed 24 of 32 teams to approve the ban at an owners meeting in May, but narrowly failed.
Ultimately, only 22 teams voted to ban the tush push, while the Eagles and nine other franchises voted in the other direction.
Those teams were the Ravens, Browns, Lions, Jaguars, Dolphins, Patriots, Saints, Jets and Titans.
