When it comes to the NFL’s most unstoppable play, no team does it quite like the Philadelphia Eagles. The infamous “tush push”—or as some like to call it, the “Brotherly Shove”—has become the stuff of nightmares for defensive coordinators and a major talking point among NFL ownership, with some even advocating for its ban.
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But how do the Eagles pull it off so consistently? According to former Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham, the secret is not what you’d expect: They don’t even practice it against their own defense. Yep, you read that right.
While the rest of the league scrambles to figure out how to stop it—or even how to run it—the Eagles have turned it into second nature. And Graham is more than happy to explain why.
“It’s just a play that everybody knows is coming,” Graham told Up & Adams host Kay Adams. “And if we didn’t have the personnel for it, then of course y’all would stop it. But since you don’t have the personnel… [you can only complain].”
Indeed, the likes of Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata are absolute animals in the trenches—no doubt about it. Even still, how are the Eagles able to execute the tush push so well without ever running it live at practice? It’s not like the players GM Howie Roseman drafts have been repping this move back in college.
According to Graham, players are, of course, taught the technique—but only in two-on-two situations. Nothing more. And why is that? Well, the reason you’ll never see Saquon Barkley pushing Jalen Hurts at the line during training camp is because of the chaos it could cause.
“No, we don’t run it against each other,” he said. “Nah, nah, nah. ‘Cause it’ll be some fights’… It would be like the twos versus twos, just so they can learn it.”
In simple words, don’t expect the Eagles’ starting cohort to maul each other during training camp over a yard worth of gain.
Today I learned the Eagles raw dawg the tush push.
@brandongraham55 #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/GNTfAD7PIL
— Kay Adams (@heykayadams) April 9, 2025
While the naysayers have called the tush push everything from cheap to boring, Graham has a simple answer for them: stop crying. “People gotta work. They’re gonna figure something out. This league is very smart. You better come with some different flavor this year,” he shot back.
So, there you have it. The Eagles’ tush push is so dialed in, they don’t even need to spar over it in practice. And truth be told, there might be nothing more impressive you’ll read today. How many teams can run a play that everyone knows is coming, yet no one can stop?
