- Joined
- May 8, 2002
- Posts
- 401,439
- Reaction score
- 43
NFL defenses haven't had much luck stopping the Eagles' "Brotherly Shove" short-yardage play on the field. Now a contingent of the league's owners is stepping in.
A proposal to ban the so-called "tush push" has been raised at the league meetings this week in West Palm Beach, Fla. And Cowboys co-owner and chief operating office Stephen Jones is among those pushing to outlaw the tactic.
The rule change proposal was brought by the Green Bay Packers, seeking to ban the play made popular (and quite successful) over the past several seasons by the Philadelphia Eagles behind quarterback Jalen Hurts. Specifically, per ESPN's Kalyn Kahler, the proposal seeks 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."
Debate on the topic reportedly got "heated" during meetings this weekend, with front-office types and coaches from the Eagles, Los Angeles Rams, and Buffalo Bills having a "private and animated side conversation" at one point.
Critics of the tush push cite player safety and pace of play as official reasons why it should not be allowed, yet NFL executive Troy Vincent has stated that no injuries have been reported to the league as a result of the play.
Most opponents tend to fall back on how the play looks, almost universally comparing it to a rugby scrum.
According to the NFL's current rulebook: "No offensive player may immediately at the snap, push or throw his body against a teammate, who was lined up directly behind the snapper and received the snap, to aid him in an attempt to gain yardage."
Jones, who sits on the league's competition committee, offered some insight as to what the committee was considering in regard to this specific play.
Other coaches and team executives have argued that a new rule eliminating the tush push would effectively be punishing the one or two teams who have figured out how to run the play with any degree of success.
"It reeks of jealousy," one executive said.
"When a team gets something that they’re good at, you gotta learn how to stop [it],” Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles has said. “I don’t think the first thing you can do is try to take it out of the ballgame, because that takes away the creativity of everybody trying to do everything else. So you gotta learn how to stop it."
This is the third offseason in a row that talk of banning the tush push has come up during the league meetings, but it's the first time a team has submitted an official proposal to outlaw it.
Eagles coach Nick Sirianni has said that he expects three of his former coordinators (who are now coaching other teams) to vote with Philadelphia in preventing a rule change.
"All I will say about it is [Cardinals head coach Jonathan] Gannon, [Colts head coach Shane] Steichen and [former Cowboys offensive coordinator, now Saints head coach Kellen] Moore better vote for it," Sirianni told NFL Network. "They are in the position right now because of that play. So all three, I better have those three votes right there, and the Eagles' vote. I at least know we have four."
Any change to the rulebook must be approved by 24 out of 32 owners. An official vote on the tush push is expected Tuesday morning.
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys' Stephen Jones on NFL's possible 'tush push' rule change
Continue reading...
A proposal to ban the so-called "tush push" has been raised at the league meetings this week in West Palm Beach, Fla. And Cowboys co-owner and chief operating office Stephen Jones is among those pushing to outlaw the tactic.
The rule change proposal was brought by the Green Bay Packers, seeking to ban the play made popular (and quite successful) over the past several seasons by the Philadelphia Eagles behind quarterback Jalen Hurts. Specifically, per ESPN's Kalyn Kahler, the proposal seeks 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."
Debate on the topic reportedly got "heated" during meetings this weekend, with front-office types and coaches from the Eagles, Los Angeles Rams, and Buffalo Bills having a "private and animated side conversation" at one point.
Critics of the tush push cite player safety and pace of play as official reasons why it should not be allowed, yet NFL executive Troy Vincent has stated that no injuries have been reported to the league as a result of the play.
Most opponents tend to fall back on how the play looks, almost universally comparing it to a rugby scrum.
According to the NFL's current rulebook: "No offensive player may immediately at the snap, push or throw his body against a teammate, who was lined up directly behind the snapper and received the snap, to aid him in an attempt to gain yardage."
Jones, who sits on the league's competition committee, offered some insight as to what the committee was considering in regard to this specific play.
Other coaches and team executives have argued that a new rule eliminating the tush push would effectively be punishing the one or two teams who have figured out how to run the play with any degree of success.
"It reeks of jealousy," one executive said.
"When a team gets something that they’re good at, you gotta learn how to stop [it],” Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Todd Bowles has said. “I don’t think the first thing you can do is try to take it out of the ballgame, because that takes away the creativity of everybody trying to do everything else. So you gotta learn how to stop it."
This is the third offseason in a row that talk of banning the tush push has come up during the league meetings, but it's the first time a team has submitted an official proposal to outlaw it.
Eagles coach Nick Sirianni has said that he expects three of his former coordinators (who are now coaching other teams) to vote with Philadelphia in preventing a rule change.
"All I will say about it is [Cardinals head coach Jonathan] Gannon, [Colts head coach Shane] Steichen and [former Cowboys offensive coordinator, now Saints head coach Kellen] Moore better vote for it," Sirianni told NFL Network. "They are in the position right now because of that play. So all three, I better have those three votes right there, and the Eagles' vote. I at least know we have four."
Any change to the rulebook must be approved by 24 out of 32 owners. An official vote on the tush push is expected Tuesday morning.
This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys' Stephen Jones on NFL's possible 'tush push' rule change
Continue reading...
