What makes sports so unique is its ability to unite and divide the masses at the same time. While everyone loves the NFL, the divisions begin when it comes to the details. From debates over roughing the passer flags to overtime rules, the regulations have always been a hot topic among fans. And the flavor of the year? The Tush Push.
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Yes, a glorified quarterback sneak has somehow become the NFL’s version of pineapple on pizza — where a few teams love it or don’t mind it, most hate it. And the rest are just mad the Eagles do it better than anyone else.
So, what’s a Tush Push? It’s a play in which the quarterback gets shoved forward by teammates for short-yardage conversions — and it’s become Philly’s not-so-secret weapon. It’s not flashy. It’s not elegant. But it works. Almost too well.
For context, over the last three years, the Eagles and Bills have converted a wild 87% of their tush pushes into first downs or touchdowns. Everyone else? 71%. Safe to say, no team does or benefits from this play more than the Eagles. So naturally, as NFL owners and coaches gathered in Florida to discuss rule changes recently, banning the infamous QB sneak was on the agenda — with the Packers leading the charge.
But despite all the noise, the league didn’t vote. Instead, they tabled the proposal until May, giving both sides more time to argue their case. And, while Roger Goodell & Co. have taken their time to think it through, veteran analyst Colin Cowherd already seems to have made up his mind about it.
On the latest episode of The Herd, Cowherd made it clear that he isn’t a fan of the play — at all.
“I appreciate the innovation of the tush push,” Cowherd admitted before saying. “I think it’s awful television. I don’t think it’s a football play.”
The analyst didn’t stop there, suggesting that just as the IRS deals with financial loopholes, the NFL should do the same to clean up the game. “It’s up to the IRS to slap an accountant on the hand and go, ‘You’re not going to use that loophole anymore.’ But an accountant’s job is to find the loophole.”
In simple words, Cowherd believes that the Eagles are doing what any smart team would do—gaming the system. That’s why the system needs fixing.
.@colincowherd and @DMRussini agree: banning the Tush Push feels inevitable pic.twitter.com/FVePw1defR
— Herd w/Colin Cowherd (@TheHerd) April 4, 2025
The Athletic’s NFL insider, Diana Russini, chimed in with some behind-the-scenes information, intriguingly noting that the Tush Push debate is turning into a political campaign — with the Eagles’ front office meeting relevant stakeholders and lobbying for support.
“There was definitely a feeling around the league that Roger Goodell did not like the play,” she said. “You’ve got people from the Philadelphia Eagles running around talking to all the different coaches and GMs, trying to convince them why they shouldn’t ban this play.”
And could this debate growing beyond the game spell bad news for Nick Sirianni & Co.? Russini definitely thinks so. “When it came down to it, the votes, it was even. So they decide then to just table this thing. And that is just nothing but bad news for Philadelphia,” the Insider noted.
So, while Eagles coach Nick Sirianni may call the criticisms “insulting” and fans in Philly cry foul, the writing might be on the wall. Come May, the league may not just ban the Tush Push — they might take us all the way back to the pre-2004 rulebook, when pushing a runner was flat-out illegal.
And should that happen, Colin Cowherd will be the first to say, ‘I saw this coming.’
