Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

NFL Tush Push Ban – Andy Reid, Mike Tomlin, and Other NFL Head Coaches Share Their 2 Cents Ahead of the NFL Owners Meeting

The Tush Push will undergo yet another discussion during the NFL owners meeting

Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The NFL owners are set to meet up once again this week to discuss the future of the ‘Tush Push’ play among other issues. The Tush Push, made famous by the Philadelphia Eagles, has garnered plenty of attention as there is a raging debate around the fact that it does not constitute what is termed as a ‘football play’.

While many teams and fans around the league are fine with the play and have come out in support of the Eagles, others are taking a different approach, especially the Green Bay Packers, who have revised their language before the owners vote this week.

This issue was previously discussed earlier in the offseason when the owners met in Palm Beach, Florida, but the decision was tabled at the time.

NFL Head Coaches React to the Potential Tush Push Ban

As mentioned previously, teams are taking different angles with respect to the play, with many head coaches voicing out their opinions ahead of the big decision. Here are what some of the NFL coaches have said in context to the matter at hand.

DeMeco Ryans Questions the Logic of the Ban, While Raheem Morris Is Not a Fan

Houston Texans coach DeMeco Ryans has lent his support for the play, justifying it by saying:

“It’s tough to punish a team for being really good at something.”

#Texans HC DeMeco Ryans on the #Packers' proposal to ban the tush-push:

“It’s tough to punish a team for being really good at something.” pic.twitter.com/CPZXGqfvjf
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) March 31, 2025

On the other hand, Atlanta Falcons head coach Raheem Morris has addressed the issue by stating that he was never a fan of the play and doesn’t encourage the idea of pushing a human into another one and risking injury.

“I don’t want to push a human into another human in a submarine fashion and potentially risk catastrophic injury.”

Also Read: Fred Warner’s Latest Extension to the 49ers’ Busy Month After Brock Purdy, George Kittle Extension

Andy Reid Doesn’t Mind It, but Matt LaFleur Wants Nothing To Do With It

The Kansas City Chiefs, who played the Eagles in the Super Bowl most recently, have been rather diplomatic in their stand about the play. Head Coach Andy Reid says that he understands both sides of the argument but needs more details before reaching a conclusion.

“If it’s putting a player in a bad position, then you probably have to do something about it. But if it’s not, it’s a heck of a play.”

As for Matt Lafleur, he and the Packers are dead against keeping the play in the league, calling it more of a rugby play and one that poses severe injury concerns as well.

“I don’t think it’s a football play. It’s more of a rugby play. And some of the injury concerns, we wanted to get out in front of that and be more proactive.”

Matt LaFleur on why he’s in favor of banning the tush push: pic.twitter.com/Jdn3w3zF4E
— Pete Dougherty (@PeteDougherty) April 1, 2025

Mike Tomlin Wants To Respect the Innovation, Yet Sean McDermott Looks at Player Safety Ahead of the Decision

Steelers’ head coach Mike Tomlin was amazed the play was allowed the first time he saw it, since it is banned during field goals, but he salutes the creativity and doesn’t wish to be against the play.

“The first time I saw it, I couldn’t believe that it was legal because it was illegal on the field goal. That being said. You hate to be against it, because when people are innovative, you want to respect that.”

“The first time I saw it, I couldn’t believe that it was legal"

Steelers HC Mike Tomlin on the Eagles Tush Push Debate

"You hate to be against it, because when people are innovative, you want to respect that…
We hate to penalize them for it"https://t.co/Jw7fg6f1oe pic.twitter.com/dCyz4n79pY
— Jeff Skversky (@JeffSkversky) April 1, 2025

Buffalo Bills’ coach Sean McDermott simply believes that the players’ health and safety should be the most important point during such points of discussions.

“We’re going to always act in a way that’s best for the health and safety of the players.”

When Is the NFL Owners Meeting for Rule Changes for the 2025 NFL Season?

Franchise owners are now set to meet for the second time this offseason, this time during the Spring League Meeting, which will be held on May 20th and 21st at the Omni Viking Lakes Hotel in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Apart from the decision over the banning of the ‘Tush Push’ play, the other topics on the agenda are as follows:

Re-seeding the teams after the first round of the playoffs based on the overall regular season win-loss records.
Whether or not to allow NFL players to participate in the flag football event at the 2028 Olympics.

NFL

Philadelphia Eagles

Tush Push play

Devavrat Kulkarni

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I am a content writer for the NFL team, and joined The Playoffs after working with Sportskeeda and NFL Analysis as an NFL writer. After starting my professional career as a French-to-English translator, working as a content writer is a new adventure for me. I started out in the sports media field for two main reasons: my love for sports in general, especially the NFL, NBA, and Tennis, as well as my passion for writing. The best part of this job is that I get to write a variety of pieces with the freedom to explore content from various angles. It also enables me to stay up to date with the sporting world, which otherwise can be difficult to do in the day-to-day grind. In a world full of chaos, sports unite and entertain like nothing else!