Greg Olsen was one of the better tight ends in the NFL during his time in the league. He’s now become arguably one of the best color commentators on television. In his short time calling games, he’s seen the Philadelphia Eagles become proficient at one specific play: the tush push.
In a recent interview, he broke down how that play gives the Eagles an advantage no other team has.
Olsen Says The Tush Push Lets The Eagles Play Four Downs Every Possession
For years, NFL teams have been quick to send the punter or kicker on the field on fourth down, no matter the field position. It was ingrained in football lore that teams only went for it if they were trailing late in the game. The adoption of analytics by the football world has changed how teams approach fourth down, and the Eagles have designed a play that’s tailor-made for short-yardage situations.
The overhead view of the @Eagles tush push 👌 pic.twitter.com/WUOVeMXorj
— NFL UK & Ireland (@NFLUKIRE) January 26, 2025
According to a recent article from DAZN, Philadelphia began running the tush push in 2022 and converted 25 of 27 attempts. That astonishing 93% conversion rate was due to future Hall-of-Fame center Jason Kelce and the fact that no defense knew how to handle the play.
The DAZN article references a quote by head coach Nick Siriani in 2023, “Every first down is first-and-9. We have a lot of faith in that play.” Olsen couldn’t agree more with Siriani’s remark when he recently broke down the play and the advantage it gives the Eagles in an exclusive interview with PFSN.
“Their greatest advantage of why they can play with an extra down is, yes, the tush push… Now, on 3rd and 5, I can hand it to Saquon Barkley. If he gets six or more, great, but if he gets three or four, everyone on the sideline, everyone in the stadium, knows exactly what we’re going to do, and you can’t stop us.” Olsen brought up Philadelphia’s running back, who has added an other-worldly wrinkle to the Eagles’ offense.
Barkley led the league in rushing yards (2,005), carries (345), and yards per game (125.3) in 2024. If he had this statistical season twenty years ago, he’d be a no-doubter for MVP, but he unfortunately doesn’t play quarterback.
Olsen continued discussing the tush push’s effectiveness, saying, “There are very few teams [who can do that]. We saw the Bills two weeks ago; it was the complete opposite — they did a million quarterback sneaks, but they couldn’t get a [yard].”
The Bills had been effective running their version of the quarterback sneak because Josh Allen is 6’5″, 237 pounds. However, Buffalo’s offensive line couldn’t get the job done in their biggest game of the season.
That hasn’t been a problem for the Eagles, who have rattled off an 82.4% success rate with the tush push. Olsen brought up how the confidence that they will gain one yard has changed how Philadelphia’s coaches call the game.
“That is not just by happenstance. That is just not a coincidence; that is baked into every single decision [made by] Nick Sirianni, who’s orchestrating it.” Olsen told PFSN, “Every play call that Kellen Moore has, the down and distance, the yards remaining, and the field position tells him, I have an extra down, I have such an advantage over every other team in the league on how you want to defend me and my ability to spread 10 yards over four as opposed to 10 yards over three. That is who they are.”
The Eagles finished No. 14 in PFSN’s Offense+ metric for 2024 with a 77.4 (C) grade. Overall, their offense is middle of the road, but the four-down mindset they play with puts opposing defenses in a bind. Defenses know what’s coming on 4th and 1, can’t stop it, and then have to defend at least another four plays. That wears down a team as the game goes on, but Philadelphia strengthens.
“They play with the lead, they can get fourth downs, they maximize possessions. We can go on and on about the trickle-down effect of that, and now, all of a sudden, I’ve got to play you from behind. I’m going to hand it to Saquon on over 50% of the snaps. I can be a run game, I’ve got the best defense in the league, and all of a sudden, your entire play style just fits so nicely into place.”
Olsen continued, “And, oh yeah, you’re probably the most talented roster. Again, these are not things they just arbitrarily decide in the moment. This is who they are; this is the identity in which they play, and it’s not just by chance. They’ve identified this as a key advantage to their philosophy, and they lean into it, which is great.”
The tush push is the en-vogue play for this era of NFL football, but only one team can consistently pull it off. The Eagles will look for one more stellar performance in Super Bowl 59 and odds are the tush push will play a central role in the outcome.