Report: NFL owners scheduled to meet, vote on ‘tush push’ ban

NFL owners are scheduled to meet Tuesday and Wednesday to vote on the tush push ban proposal, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. The Philadelphia Eagles mastered the play over the last few years but some called into question the legitimacy of the play.

“NFL owners are scheduled to meet Tuesday and Wednesday in Minneapolis to vote on a proposal to ban the ‘tush push’ play that the Eagles have mastered,” Schefter wrote on Twitter. “The proposal was tabled this spring at the league meeting in West Palm Beach but is expected to come to a vote this week.”

The Eagles developed the tush push as their version of the quarterback sneak, where QB Jalen Hurts finds a lane behind a dominant offensive line. He gets some assistance from those lined up in the backfield, vaulting him forward as the entire offense lowers their level.

Usually, this play has proved unstoppable, although Philadelphia has been stopped on occasion. Others teams tried the play, or at least their version last year, and were not nearly as successful.

Jason Kelce, who was integral to the play during his playing days, doesn’t want to see the play banned. Neither does Kansas City Chiefs tight end and brother Travis Kelce.

“I get it,” Jason Kelce said. “I get why certain teams want to ban it for competitive reasons. I get why some people think that it’s potentially unsafe. I think optically it looks unsafe. For me personally, I never felt like there’s that much more more of a risk of injuring somebody on the play, and I don’t think there’s any statistics to back that up. … I think the only argument I see for potentially banning it is—is there a competitive advantage? Is it unfair that players can push? And should we allow players to push rather than ball carriers or anybody to have to do things on their own?

“I think it’s going to be a hard rule to enforce. When is that enforced? Are gang tackles outlawed? When [Chiefs center] Creed Humphrey gets behind a running back [in the open field] and pushing the pile forward—do we not want that? Because I like that.”

The Eagles, tush push or not, go into the 2025 season as the favorites to win Super Bowl LX. They’ll look to become the third team this century to win back-to-back titles.