NFL Targets Eagles’ Tush Push After Missed Call Controversy

NFL is also narrowing in its process of calling the Tush Push by referees following increased controversy that surrounded the play over the weekend.

The viral short-yardage play provided the outrage during the Eagles 20-17 victory over the Chiefs on Sunday when it was evident that Philadelphia escaped with a false start. Later, the Washington Post noted that the league acknowledged that there were at least one penalty which ought to have been called against the Eagles.

In its turn, NFL responded by instructing referees via its weekly training tape to call the play more strictly in the future.

Ramon George, the vice president of training and development officiating in the league, said in the video that he wanted to officiate it tight. “We want to be black and white … Before the snap, it appears that the right guard has motion. We also possess movement on the opposite side, on the defensive side. This is a play that is extremely difficult to referee. I get it.”

The fourth quarter episode was the most heated in which right guard Tyler Steen seemed to come offside but went unsanctioned. The league has since indicated that that ought to have been termed as a false start.

This debate isn’t new. In the middle of this year the Packers spearheaded an effort to have the play banned outright and the effort failed by a mere two votes. The Ravens, Patriots, Jets, and Lions were allied with the Eagles to make it a legal issue.

Adam Schefter of ESPN complained on Get Up: This game was lost in March, when the NFL owners decided not to ban the Tush Push. It’s unstoppable. The defense is not sure how to prevent it, the officials are not sure how to make a call, and the Eagles are able to get away with it each time.

On the other end, Jason Kelce, a former center of Eagles, who played a crucial role in the play over the last several seasons, defended referees in his podcast New Heights. He said that the velocity of the Tush Push renders false starts difficult to detect during action.

Nevertheless, Kelce acknowledged that the Eagles will be under more scrutiny now. They will be micro-scrutinized in future. All of them will be staring at this due to the case at hand, Kelce said. They must be extremely alert as the calls are going to be beginning to come, and they ought to.