Eagles HC Nick Sirianni Defends Rugby Style Scrum QB Sneak Push

With a little assistance from their buddies, the Philadelphia Eagles were able to cross the first down line this season, revolutionising the quarterback sneak in the process. The Eagles used the so-called “tush push,” a rugby style scrum on the field, to push Jalen Hurts forward from behind to give him more propulsion. This strategy helped the team complete 29 of 32 quarterback sneaks.

Eagles HC Nick Sirianni Defends Rugby Style Scrum QB Sneak Push

Although players have been permitted to push the ball carrier forward since 2005, the Eagles’ success with the play made the “tush push” a hot topic of discussion within the league’s competition committee last week. In fact, the move was so innovative and effective that it could be completely banned. The Eagles are now attempting to defend their Quarterback sneak, something no other team has been able to do.

“I think some defensive coaches are bringing that up,” Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni said on Tuesday during a press conference at the NFL Draft Combine. “We’ll play with whatever rules they have. Obviously, it was a very successful play for us … But it wasn’t the only thing we were doing [in those situations]. I think we had some exciting plays that came off of it, when the defenses were trying to stop the [push] play that they thought was coming. And that’s kind of what football is, right?”

“This is an opportunity for the game to evolve, I think,” Seattle Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said in his Tuesday press conference in support of Sirianni and the Eagles. “I didn’t [initially] understand or didn’t realize how far they had gone with their commitment in terms of it looking like a rugby play in a scrum. I thought that was an evolutionary opportunity for the league.”

Although the tactic was unquestionably successful, the NFL competition committee, which will be meeting at the 2023 NFL Combine, has expressed its displeasure with it. As a result, the league could think about making a rule change that forbids such kind of play.

Clearly, that development hasn’t thrilled the Eagles brass, and on Tuesday they took the opportunity to defend the team’s strategy at the combine.

“All I know is everything we’re doing is legal and it works,” Eagles executive vice president and general manager Howie Roseman said, per ESPN. “And just because people do something that’s really good doesn’t mean it should be outlawed.”

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