Giants' Kayvon Thibodeaux has blunt assessment of latest tush push controversy

"I don't know, that's some bull---- man," Thibodeaux said of the officiating on that play. "Honestly, when it comes to that play and what happened, I feel like the refs got kind of a hard job because they don't know when to stop it. I think it's tough on the defense because it's like, you stop the first surge, the ref don't blow the whistle. You get the ball out and you take it and it's all of a sudden ... forward progress. At the end of the day, you just got to keep playing, man. S--- happens and [you have to] keep trying to give it your best."

Giants head coach Brian Daboll couldn't challenge the fumble, as forward progression isn't a challengeable ruling. He tried to challenge a different aspect of the play to at least get the refs to review it, but the Giants lost the challenge and a timeout. 

When asked what explanation the refs gave Thibodeaux, he said they decided Hurts' forward progress was stopped before he reached the ball out. 

"Sounds like some bull--- to me," Thibodeaux said.

How the ruling impacted the game

After the controversial ruling, the Eagles scored another touchdown and didn't relinquish the lead for the rest of the game. Of course, the Giants defense didn't do itself any favors by giving up 276 rushing yards and letting running back Saquon Barkley have his best game of 2025 with 14 carries for 150 yards and a touchdown on the ground and in the air. 

Still, the game was tied at 7-7 when the ruling happened, and the successful tush push allowed the Eagles' drive to continue. Seeing how the Eagles took their revenge game seriously after losing to the Giants in Week 6, one controversial call wouldn't change the outcome. The call may, however, make it more likely that the tush push is banned, as controversy continues to surround the play almost every week.

In the meantime, players and fans alike will just have to watch it unfold. There's also no reason the Eagles shouldn't keep running the tush push when it works in their favor. 

When Thibodeaux's defensive teammate Brian Burns said he would get fined for how he was talking about the play, Thibodeaux laughed and said, "Oh, sorry. I mean, that was a great call by the ref."