Eagles’ “tush push” becoming the NFL’s most unstoppable play

The most unstoppable play in NFL history was on display under the spotlights Monday night.

When the Philadelphia Eagles want a yard, they frequently use the “tush push.”

Jalen Hurts, the quarterback, lines up behind center with two or three guys behind him. He takes the snap, the offensive line rushes forward, and Hurts receives a powerful push from behind.

It nearly always works. Even when it doesn’t work, the Eagles try again.

The Eagles did it successfully for the fourth time against the Buccaneers in the fourth quarter to extend a drive that ate up the last 9:22 minutes.

Last year, Philadelphia had remarkable success with the “tush push” on their road to the Super Bowl, going 37 for 41. Opponents despise it because they cannot defeat it. After enough objections from other coaches, the NFL’s competition committee discussed potentially prohibiting the play, but they did not come up with a rule to bring to a vote that would restrict it.

This season, the Eagles can do it as many times as they want. The play has been permissible in the NFL since 2005 when the league removed wording from the rule book that prevented offensive players from being pushed. But the club has yet to take advantage of it quite like the Eagles and Hurts under coach Nick Sirianni.

A quarterback who can squat 600 pounds and a great offensive line led by All-Pro center Jason Kelce, Pro Bowl left guard Landon Dickerson, and All-Pro right tackle Lane Johnson assist.

“Obviously, it’s a play that we’ve had a lot of success with over the last few years, and it’s just a physical play,” Goedert stated. “Jalen does an excellent job of identifying the zone’s weak point.” They were attempting to leap over the pile today, but I was prepared at the rear. If we need a yard, we’ll get one with our O-line… Jalen will battle for it.”

On the touchdown sneak, Goedert wrapped his arm around Hurts and attempted to hoist him in.

“I was yanking him, for sure,” Goedert admitted. “They say you can’t pull, but I was behind him.”

To stop Hurts, the Buccaneers tried a new technique, having defensive linemen leap over the offensive line.

“We’ve seen it with linebackers, but their nose tackle was trying to jump over, too,” Goedert stated. “It’s one of those situations where once they get their feet off the ground, it’s better for us, so if they jump, we’ll definitely get that (forward) movement.” It’s a high-stakes bet for them. They should have (Steelers Hall of Famer) Troy Polamalu timing it precisely. That’s their only chance.”

Dickerson encapsulated the key to success.

“Complete your task,” he said.

Other clubs have attempted it in a copycat league. In Week 1, the Colts, Jaguars, and Bears all failed. People can only compete with Philadelphia in terms of success rate and frequency.

“Not everyone has Jason Kelce, Landon Dickerson, or Cam Jurgens on their team.” Jordan Mailata is only available to some. Only some have Lane Johnson on their team. “Not every team has that quarterback,” Sirianni said last week. “We noticed that last year when people were making a big deal out of it.” Some are unsuccessful. But there is certainly a talent to it that our men possess because it is not as – maybe it is automatic right now for the Philadelphia Eagles – but it could be more intuitive across the NFL.

“I understand why some people are upset, but please stop.” Stop the game. As we’ve seen around the NFL, it’s more automatic than people believe. Isn’t it true that our gamers make it work? We, as coaches, are doing nothing. We call the play, and the guys go out there and make it happen. We did a lot of research on everything in the offseason to help us get better, but it’s all about those players up front. It all comes down to Jalen. I believe we would be quite effective without the push, but we push them occasionally to give that additional thud.”

The Eagles also attempted a “tush push” in the third quarter, maybe to give opponents something new to think about. Hurts began to back up but fell and was tackled for a loss.

“I don’t think two plays in a row is stoppable.” “I believe we had a couple here and there,” Buccaneers coach Todd Bowles said. “Both sides are carrying a lot of weight.” They had a fantastic play. They made it. The offensive line coach is excellent. It’s going to take a lot of work since they have a large athletic quarterback, and you have to push behind. But we understood it from the start.”

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