The “tush push” nearly got banned back in May, but the motion fell short by just two votes, as per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. So, it wasn’t surprising when the play resurfaced in the Chiefs’ Week 2 game, quickly drawing the attention of fans and experts. Tom Brady joined in, too, taking a shot at the Eagles for relying on it.

The NFL legend released his Week 2 power rankings, praising the Chargers and Packers. But just like week 1, he put the Eagles at No. 1. “Look, I said it last week, someone’s got to beat the champs to knock them off the top spot. The (Kansas City) Chiefs kept things close at Arrowhead this weekend, and I was there to watch. But Philly leaned on that defense to win the Super Bowl rematch,” Brady explained.

While giving credit, the NFL legend couldn’t resist cracking a joke about the play in question. “That one QB sneak play is still working too, huh? Not controversial at all. You guys all love it. They should come up with a name for it or something,” he said, hinting back to his earlier comment after Week 2. On September 14th, he called out the Eagles’ short-yardage play and said, “It’s like (the Eagles) start every position at 1st and 9 because they’re stealing a yard with that play every time.”

The Eagles leaned heavily on the tush push in the fourth quarter, running it five times. One of those came on a 1-yard touchdown by Jalen Hurts that gave the Eagles a 20–10 lead with just under eight minutes remaining. But the score sparked controversy. Replays showed what looked like a false start, with all three interior linemen appearing to jump early before the snap.

Brady wasn’t alone. Underdog’s Hayden Winks, Chris Bryant, and several others shared the same sentiment. “Tush Push is bad for the game. Not because it works for 1 team more than any other but because the play isn’t officiated properly. False starts/offsides for most part ignored. The play slows the pace of game too. This will be the last yr. They’ll get votes to abolish next time,” NFL reporter Kevin Sheehan wrote on X

Well, the league’s previous effort to ban the play after a proposal from the Packers fell short, as at least 24 votes were needed. While some critics argue the tush push is dangerous, analysts say the real issue is how tough it is to officiate. As Fox rules analyst Dean Blandino said, “I am done with the tush push, guys…Really hard to see what’s happening with the football. We’re inside two (minutes) so replay has looked at this and they’ve determined that there was no fumble,” he said.

Coach Andy Reid might have a different opinion

Andy Reid called out the refs for the tush push

The noise around the game was more given that this was a Super Bowl rematch. The play just added more fuel to the fire. But Coach Reid didn’t hesitate to share his take on the decision. “I think you know the answer to it. If guys are moving early, then you’ve got to call that. So they’ll go back and look at that and see what their evaluation is of it. It could be different than mine,” Reid said. Calling for better officiating in the game and specifically during that particular play.

While the replay suggested that Eagles linemen moved early, Nick Sirianni believes that it is the slow motion that makes it difficult for the officials to make tough, split-second calls in real time. Joining Coach Reid in the conversation was Jason Dunn.

Dunn explained that while he doesn’t wish for the play to be banned, there should be proper officiating consistency. “You’ve got to go and scrunch almost like they do when they do that at 4th of one, and they try to go and do the whole uh illegal tush push, because it was illegal, because they jumped outside a couple times, and that’s something they need to be looking at,” he said.

So, there has been a demand for officials to be more careful and avoid such mistakes rather than banning the play altogether. On the other hand, many argue that it is hard to officiate, making it a complicated debate.