Packers Brace for Eagles’ Signature ‘Tush Push’ Play

GREEN BAY, Wis. — When the Green Bay Packers host the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night, one play will dominate the conversation long before kickoff — the Eagles’ infamous “tush push.” It’s a play the Packers unsuccessfully sought to have banned earlier this year, and one coach Matt LaFleur no longer wants to publicly debate.

“I’m not going to get into it,” LaFleur said Thursday when asked about the tactic. “It is what it is. The NFL made a decision, and we have to find a way to try to stop the play — and it’s a tough play to stop.”

The “tush push,” or quarterback sneak aided by pushing linemen and backs from behind, has become one of the league’s most polarizing tactics. The Eagles have mastered it better than any team in recent memory, turning short-yardage downs into near guarantees.

For LaFleur and the Packers, who face an Eagles team that thrives in those tight situations, the focus now isn’t on rule changes — it’s on preparation and damage control.

1. Packers’ Attempt to Ban the Play Falls Short

This offseason, Green Bay led a formal effort to ban the “tush push,” citing both safety concerns and competitive imbalance. The initiative was spearheaded by former Packers president Mark Murphy, who retired in July, with support from LaFleur and general manager Brian Gutekunst. Their argument was straightforward: the play exposes quarterbacks to unnecessary hits and creates an uneven advantage by exploiting leverage and mass rather than traditional technique. Despite extensive discussion among league owners and coaches, the proposal narrowly failed in May — falling just two votes short of the 24 required for passage. The NFL ultimately opted to keep the play legal for the 2025 season, arguing there wasn’t sufficient data to justify a ban. Many around the league viewed the decision as an endorsement of creativity and power football. Now, LaFleur and defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley must scheme against the very play they wanted eliminated. “You can’t allow them in those short-yardage situations because you know exactly what they’re going to do,” LaFleur said. “And they’ve been pretty successful at it, obviously.”

2. Eagles’ Efficiency, Packers’ Dilemma

Philadelphia’s execution of the “tush push” remains among the league’s best. According to ESPN Research, the Eagles have attempted the play 21 times through eight games this season, converting 76.5% of the time. That figure, while slightly down from previous years, still underscores how reliable the tactic has been for quarterback Jalen Hurts and his offensive line. The Eagles’ success rates over the past three seasons — 82.1% in 2024, 83.3% in 2023, and an astounding 92.6% in 2022 — have forced opponents to rethink their defensive approaches. For many teams, including Green Bay, the best strategy has been to prevent short-yardage situations altogether. Ironically, the Packers themselves experimented with the play in 2023, running it five times with quarterback Jordan Love and converting four. But they have since abandoned it. “Every team’s built a little differently,” LaFleur said. “And for me, it’s always, do you want your quarterback subject to some of those hits that he could potentially face in those situations?” That risk-reward balance has defined the broader debate around the play — one that pits innovation against player safety and tradition against adaptation.

3. Looking Ahead to Monday Night

Monday’s matchup between the Packers and Eagles carries more than just playoff implications — it’s a philosophical clash between two teams that represent opposite sides of one of football’s hottest debates. For the Eagles, the “tush push” remains a symbol of precision and physical dominance. For the Packers, it’s a reminder of an offseason effort that fell just short of changing the game. Philadelphia defeated Green Bay twice last season — once in the regular-season opener and again in the NFC wild-card round — both times leaning on its short-yardage power game to sustain drives and control tempo. The Packers’ defense, one of the youngest in the league, will now get another test of resilience and discipline. LaFleur’s approach appears pragmatic: avoid emotional debates, focus on execution, and prevent third-and-one situations where the play thrives. “You just can’t give them the opportunity,” he reiterated. For a Packers team still defining its identity, Monday offers both a test of preparation and a measure of progress — not only against one of the NFL’s elite rosters but against the very play they sought to erase from the rulebook.