The Philadelphia Eagles are going to Super Bowl 59 after a 55-23 win over the Washington Commanders in the 2025 NFC Championship Game.
In the NFC Championship, the Philadelphia Eagles broke out their signature Tush Push multiple times. The Eagles’ notorious quarterback sneak worked so well that it prompted the Washington Commanders to receive a warning from the officials due to repeated offsides penalties.
How can defenses stop this play? It leaves defenses no choice but to be aggressive.
The Tush Push Debate Reaches Headlines After Eagles NFC Championship Win
The Commanders tried to counter the Eagles’ Tush Push, committing several goal-line infractions hoping to perfectly time and disrupt the play that has brought fear to many NFL teams. This led officials to issue a warning, threatening to award the Eagles a touchdown if the tactic continued.
The controversial sequence began with Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts attempting a quarterback sneak on 1st-and-goal early in the fourth quarter, with Philadelphia leading 34-23. The play resulted in Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu and defensive lineman Jonathan Allen each being penalized over three dead plays.
Defenses find it nearly impossible to defend the Tush Push, especially against the Eagles. Pushing the quarterback from behind is a major reason the Tush Push works. Tackling Hurts is hard enough, but what about trying to stop his forward momentum with someone propelling him from behind in a rugby-style scrum? That adds another degree of difficulty to the defensive effort.
Multiple analysts and fans believe the Tush Push should be banned and have argued so for years. Barstool Sports’ Dave Portnoy stated on social media, “The Tush Push should 100% be banned. So stupid. Don’t let players push the Qb or whoever takes the snap. It’s the worst play in football.”
“Yea I’m officially done with the tush push lol,” said former NFL player Damien Woody.
Yea I’m officially done with the tush push lol
— Damien Woody (@damienwoody) January 26, 2025
Matt Fontana, host of Cleveland Sports Radio, stated, “The tush push has become insufferable. It needs to die.”
Former NFL quarterback Kurt Benkert believes there is a more logical basis for banning the play, stating, “Ban the Tush Push. It’s an illegal formation by the O line compared to where they typically align.”
“They have to get rid of the Tush Push, man,” said “SportsCenter” anchor Randy Scott. “This is unwatchable.”
Sports reporter Micheala Bennett posted, “This is the ultimate argument for banning the Tush Push.”
Commanders’ Goal-Line Violations Spark Reactions
Because of the goal-line infractions from the Commanders, the referees warned the team against further penalties, threatening to take further action if Washington delayed the game with more issues after three straight penalties.
Some people took issue with this response from the officials, with one fan saying, “If you’re not going to allow the defense to try to time the snap, then the tush push shouldn’t be allowed anymore.”
If you’re not going to allow the defense to try to time the snap, then the tush push shouldn’t be allowed anymore.
— Kevin Turner (@ktfuntweets) January 26, 2025
The NFL rulebook states, “For successive or repeated fouls to prevent a score: If the violation is repeated after a warning, the score involved is awarded to the offensive team.”
Had the Commanders committed another encroachment violation, officials would’ve been able to award the Eagles a touchdown.
After the game, head official Shawn Hochuli said via the PFWA pool report: “Simply put, a team can’t commit multiple fouls to prevent the score. So, No. 4 [Frankie Luvu] jumped the ball a couple of times, and that was when the warning came in. Again, if it’s meant to prevent a score, we can essentially award the score.”
The Tush Push proved to be too much as the Eagles took a commanding 55-23 victory over the Commanders, registering seven rushing touchdowns.
