After months of back-and-forth, the NFL has finally reached a conclusion on whether or not the Eagles‘ patented ‘Brotherly Shove’ is a legal play. Fortunately for Birds fans, the result means that the play will be ran just as it was in recent years, with the consensus deeming it legal, and subsequently ending the case.
NFL reveals stance on ‘Tush Push’
The ‘Tush Push’ has been causing a stir for quite some time now. Despite the play being around long before Nick Sirianni’s Eagles had made it a staple of their short-yardage arsenal, its recent unstoppable nature has led to souring coaches and GM’s pushing for its removal from the league.
In essence, the play simply lines the QB up for a sneak, but sees him get a boost from another player to push him through, or over the top of the pile. Sure, it helps when your quarterback can bench more than most quarterbacks in the NFL, and your running back has quads the size of trucks. Both Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley have been instrumental in the offensive rise over the last 12 months, which of course culminated in a Super Bowl. But for whatever reason, a lot of teams in the NFL have been quick to try and stop this play in particular.
Why?
Philadelphia has converted 91.3% of their ‘Tush Push’ attempts since its induction to the offense in 2022. It’s not like the ‘Brotherly Shove’ can only be run by the Eagles, it’s just that most other teams in the NFL lack the right players to execute it properly. We’ve seen numerous franchises try and fail to run the rugby-esque play, and that seems to be the core of the issue alongside misplaced safety concerns.
Recent NFL data shows a 0% injury rate.
The good news is though that following a lengthy meeting, the play has been deemed legal. Things weren’t looking good early on until a rogue appearance from Jason Kelce may well have moved the needle.
What does it mean for the Eagles?
Despite plenty of campaigning, teams like Green Bay were unable to get their wish. They were unable to stop the Eagles from running riot on two occasions last year and have consistently lobbied for the play to be banned, only to fall short in that contest too.
The Eagles will be able to run the iconic play as much as they like and there’s nothing opposing teams can do to stop them. All of the arguments were rendered invalid, and now all eyes turn towards how to stop the beast that is Jeff Stoutland’s offensive front. Spoiler alert: You can’t.
Mandatory Credit: Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images
