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The original was posted on /r/nfl by /u/mdkss12 on 2025-02-25 18:02:16+00:00.

I think most teams genuinely don’t understand what I think is actually causing the Tush Push to be so effective.

Most teams treat it like a normal sneak where the goal is just push at the point where the ball starts, but that isn’t how the Tush Push is designed to work, and taking that tact only plays into PHI’s hands.

Now yes, option 1 is simply that the center gets a great push and Hurts just follows him forward for an easy 1-2 yards, but that’s the same as every other QB sneak ever, so what makes the Tush Push different?

The play isn’t reliant on an interior push, or even a strong QB. It’s predicated on the left side of the OLine being a swinging gate, and using the pile of bodies on the interior as a ramp to roll off of and guide the shove to the left over that side of the line.

The left side of the line slams into the sides of the Dline and is able to push them either back, to the ground, or toward the center because the D have no leverage to push back BECAUSE:

If you look at how most teams line up defensively, they all angle in toward the ball, but this plays right into the hands of PHI. here’s an extreme example of how KC tried

This WILL NOT WORK because the goal is not to actually go up the middle - this play almost always gets bounced to between (or more accurately over) the LG and LT.

As the ball is snapped, the left side of the line DIVE right to shove the bodies down/back, and you can already see the path to the left looking like it’s opening up, and while it looks like KC’s LB has gotten penetration, he hasn’t, not really, because he now has a pile of 300lb bodies directly in front of him and can’t get any push (notice he had to jump to get his hands on Hurts and in the next photo he has dropped back to the ground and has given up ground as a result)

The left side of the Line has turned into a waist-high pile, and now even if Hurts were stopped and was lying on top of the pile and had his feet in mid air the guys behind can push him left over that side of the pile and into the endzone easily (which is something that frequently happens - Hurts is no longer even driving the pile, he’s just along for the ride as he’s shoved over the pile of bodies on the left side)

When teams try to copy it, they’re all just pushing up the middle instead of using the swinging gate concept, and that’s why it often fails. Teams trying to stop it need to learn from JAX who stopped them twice in one game. (You can also look to TB or SF who have had success and line up the same way - very square to the line, not angled in)

The way to actually combat the tush push is to align shoulder to shoulder in the gaps square to the line, not angled to the ball. You functionally have to treat it like a 7 player wide rugby scrum, and you just want to push your man back to prevent that side of the line from swinging shut

Notice how JAX is lined up MUCH more square to the line and not angled to the ball. Most of the Dline’s only goal is to stand their ground. If they can push back, great, but that’s not needed to blow up the play. Now, the one player who is angled slightly is in the key position and this actually seems like a big mistake BUT, he’s NOT going to push and dive to the middle, which would result in exactly what PHI wants.

Instead, he allows the OT to go in FRONT to attempt to swing the gate, and as a result, he’s able to penetrate on that side.. Now suddenly that pile of bodies on the left isn’t there, and even if he gets shoved down, HE’S on top, and can try to grab at Hurts instead of Hurts being able to be pushed over the backs of his own linemen. (Also notice that Hurts is even moving to sneak that direction because it’ll make the push easier)

As a result, Hurts has no where to go, and the play is stopped.

Now, that’s not perfect as sometimes the interior of the Oline will just win their push anyway, but it would dramatically cut down on the insane success rate they have

Go watch all the times the play was the last 2 years for yourself and keep any eye out for these things:

  • Early usage of the play is mostly just up the middle as teams get caught off guard (and this also had Kelce as Center who was very quick off the ball and often got an excellent push to make it more of a standard sneak with no push required)
  • BUT as teams catch on, they begin loading up over center, and this is when you can really see the full play’s design and development
  • Notice how often the left side of the line crashes right
  • Notice how often the play is seemingly stopped up the middle only to end up bouncing left and over the pile of bodies
  • In those instances in particular, notice often Hurts winds up on top of the pile being pushed without even having his feet on the ground
  • Go watch other teams try and notice this difference - does the team just try to shove up the middle? Do they have their line crash right?

What I think makes the Tush Push so much more effective than most sneaks is that it has a backup plan - when most teams just shove up the middle, well if that gets stopped, that’s it - play’s over. If the center doesn’t get immediate push into the endzone, the Tush Push has the backup that the play will roll left and Hurts will ride the wave of bodies away from the congestion up the middle and into the endzone.