Will the tush push be banned? Exploring possibility of NFL shutting down Eagles’ famous play

On Wednesday, ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter reported that the Green Bay Packers had proposed the ban of the Philadelphia Eagles' famous "Tush Push" play.

According to Schefter, the Packers have proposed a rule change to rule 12, section 1 of the NFL rulebook.

The new rule, as detailed by the Packers, would be:

"To prohibit an offensive player from pushing a teammate who was lined up directly behind the snapper and receives the snap, immediately at the snap."

Why do Green Bay Packers want tush push banned?

Though the Packers have not included a definitive reason behind the proposed rule change, the most common concern around league discussions about the play seems to involve the risk of injury the play involves.

Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott raised these injury concerns once again at the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine.

"To me, there's always been an injury risk with that play, and I've expressed that opinion for the last couple of years or so when it really started to come into play the way it's being used, especially a year ago," McDermott said. "So, I just feel like, player safety and the health and safety of our players has to be at the top of our game, which it is.

"It's just that play to me has always been or the way that the techniques that are used with that play, to me have been potentially contrary to the health and safety of the players."

However, as CBS NFL insider Jonathan Jones noted, the league has not seen any scientific evidence that the play is dangerous.

"The league’s internal data on the tush push revealed there was a 0% injury rate on what is known as the Tush Push," Jones tweeted in February. "There’s concern over the "potential" for injury, but to date, there have been no reported injuries from that play."

Will NFL ban tush push? What will happen if it is?

At this time, it is unclear what the NFL will decide regarding the tush push. The play, though controversial around the league by fans and analysts alike, appears to have no safety concerns despite the widespread belief that it does.

If there are no safety concerns, it seems unlikely that the NFL will ban the move, given that it works for some teams around the league and not others. While teams such as the Bills and Eagles have had success with it, many teams do not attempt the move or have not had nearly the same amount of success as the two referenced teams.

However, if the league does ban the move, it will be interesting to see what teams do to compensate. Without the added push and force from behind the QB, the play essentially reverts to a QB sneak, a move that does not hold the same success rate as the tush push.

Without the added force, the strength of the offensive line and the QB will be more important in gaining the needed yards on the play. As a result, with the potential decline in success rate, the ban may result in teams stopping to use the formation as a whole and the end of the tush push and QB sneak as we know it.