Imagine a play so good that some franchises are trying to get it banned because they clearly haven’t mastered it. Rarely has a play in NFL history garnered so much attention as the ‘Tush Push’ since the Eagles Super Bowl LIX win. See, the play is pretty straightforward: two players push the QB forward either for a 3rd-and-1 or 4th-and-goal. And in most cases, it either results in a TD or a first down. When certain franchises criticized the play and asked for a ban, Nick Sirianni expressed his thoughts about the noise surrounding the play—they ran with their eyes closed.

Here’s the thing: The Eagles and the Bills either scored a TD or a first down 87% of the times they used Tush Push, while the rest of the league only converted 71% of their attempts. So, there’s a clear gap between the Eagles and the Bills running it compared to the other 30 franchises. Maybe that’s why Sirianni isn’t too fond of the criticism Tush Push is getting. “I almost feel a little insulted because we work so hard at that play … and our guys are talented at this play.” 

Of course, one of those examples came from the Bills only. Last season, they used tush push 37 times, second behind only the Phillies. However, there was one instance in the AFC Championship where they couldn’t use the Tush Push right, and it cost them the AFC title. Buffalo was trying to get a late 4th-down against the Chiefs. But their defense held, albeit with some controversy, to stop Josh Allen’s QB sneak. And that’s the thing Sirianni also pointed out, “You see it throughout the league. You see it in the championship games. A team failed at it and lost the game because of it… The fact that its a successful play for the Eagles, and they want to take that away is a little unfair.” 

Well, the Eagles actually proved in the Super Bowl they are the masters of Tush Push. Against the same Chiefs, they ran the play and got a couple of TDs and first downs. So, of course, Sirianni would be a bit salty seeing the league coming after the play, which they have completely made their own. Out of the 48 times they lined up for Tush Push, 39 of them resulted in a TD or first down. Astonishingly, the nine times they failed. The very next play, the Eagles ran it again, and 8 of those were successful.

Like it’s somewhat of a hack for them. Whenever you need a TD—Tush Push—Whenever you need a first down—Tush Push. And that hasn’t gone down too well with the Packers, who proposed banning it. So, with everything that’s going on surrounding the Tush Push. Super Bowl LIX runners-up Chiefs head coach Andy Reid also gave his 2 cents about the controversy that is brewing around the play.

Andy Reid gives his mixed reaction to Tush Push

See, the Chiefs were also on the receiving end of the Tush Push dominance. While they cannot say it completely overpowered them, they weren’t that effective against it either. So, when it was time for Andy Reid to spill his thoughts about the Tush Push controversy going on, he said, “I understand how it can go both ways. I think it takes certain players to be able to do that. It’s not an easy thing for the center. I was close to their center, so I know that’s not an easy thing to do. My hat goes off to them for making it as consistent as they are doing it.”

Well, the only time the Eagles were truly unsuccessful in running the Tush Push was in week 1. Jason Kelce had just retired, and Cam Jurgens got his first start as center. That was the only time Tush Push didn’t result in either a TD or a first down. Ultimately, the Eagles had to settle for a field goal. Following up on Reid’s thoughts, the Dolphins’ head coach, Mike McDaniel, also gave his verdict about the debate going on with Tush Push.

“It’s tough because I have a hard time making things illegal because of success. However, it’s a different thing if it’s a safety issue.” Well, the final decision lies in the hands of the NFL committee. Considering the proposal for the ban goes through—24 teams need to vote in favor for it to pass. So, the drama surrounding the ban on Tush Push is actually far from over. There’s a 50-50 chance it could get banned or more, you could say. Because there’s no way 31 NFL franchises would want the Eagles to continue using the Tush Push come 2025. And if they do, who knows, they could Tush Push their way again to a Super Bowl.