Current:Home > InvestStop whining about Eagles' 'Brotherly Shove.' It's beautiful. Put it in the Louvre. -MoneyMatrix
Stop whining about Eagles' 'Brotherly Shove.' It's beautiful. Put it in the Louvre.
View
Date:2025-04-16 18:16:55
Rarely in the history of the NFL has such a simple and smart play caused so much consternation, examination and whining. Seriously, it's time for everyone to shut up and stop complaining about the Brotherly Shove.
Yes, I'm telling you to shut up as I write about it. What I mainly mean is there seems to a large swath of the league ecosystem looking down its nose at the play. Like it's that uncle who comes to the barbecue and drinks too much. Or, others in the NFL who want it banned, only because they can't stop it.
The play is actually a genius coaching tactic that takes advantage of the best offensive line in football and a brilliant quarterback who can bench small cars. Check that. Big cars.
Some people actually get what the play is. It's a cheat code. A really good one.
"The Eagles have the best offensive line in football, so yes it’s a cheat code," Cowboys defensive star Micah Parsons told Bleacher Report. "They’re unstoppable at it. They have a quarterback who is squatting 600 and knows how to move his legs. So yes, it’s OD. We just have to deal with it. We have to adjust, we have to prepare to stop it."
NFL STATS CENTRAL: The latest NFL scores, schedules, odds, stats and more.
Parsons understands but others apparently don't. There's been constant complaining about it from all parts of the NFL world. From fans. From ex-game officials. From others. If your team was doing it, you would love it. But it's not so people complain.
"I think the league is going to look at this, and I’d be shocked if they don’t make a change," said Dean Blandino, a rules analyst for Fox Sports and The 33rd Team, in February.
Blandino, the league's vice president of officiating from 2013 to 2017, added this: "It amounts to a rugby scrum. The NFL wants to showcase the athleticism and skill of our athletes. This is just not a skillful play. This is just a tactic that is not an aesthetically pleasing play, and I think the competition committee is going to take a look at it."
What the NFL wants to showcase are teams that win and the Eagles are 5-0. They are unbeaten because of a great pass thrower, talent across the roster, and a coaching staff that knows how to deploy that talent. But also in part because of the Brotherly Shove. It is the special forces of offensive plays.
It is a tactic. That's true. But so is a screen pass. Or a running play. Football is full of "tactics." Some work. Some do not. Not all are pleasing to the eye. Football isn't played in the Louvre. But put this play in there.
Brotherly Shove: Undefeated Eagles plan to run successful play as long as it's legal
ESPN's Adam Schefter, the information guru, reported on Sunday that the NFL and NFLPA plan to examine all of the injury data related to the play. However, there's no indication the play causes excessive injury risk. It's possible the play might and we just don't know it yet. There were two New York Giants players injured on a failed such sneak but that wasn't about the play being dangerous; it was because the Eagles have spent years doing it, practicing it, and using their unique personnel to execute it. And by the way, the Giants coach admitted the team didn't practice the play before using it.
If you're unfamiliar with the Brotherly Shove, it's also commonly called the "Tush Push." It's a variation of the quarterback sneak where two players line up behind the quarterback and literally push his backside forward. Again, this play isn't as simple as some make it out to be. That's why Giants players got hurt on it. It does require some skill and practice. It's the football equivalent of deadlifting. You can be strong but it really helps to have technique as well.
If it's banned, it will be only because teams don't know how to stop it (yet), or because they can't replicate it as skillfully as the Eagles do (yet), or perhaps both.
I'm also highly suspicious of talk about the league doing things for player safety, when the NFL plays games on fields that aren't safe.
To me, so much of this smacks of pettiness and jealously. There may be people genuinely concerned about safety issues but this seems more about what Blandino said. How some in the league don't like how it looks. An even bigger reason is that teams can't do it as effectively as Philadelphia does and they want it gone because of that.
I'd want it gone, too, if I had to play against it. It's a huge force right now. The Eagles used the play several times against the Rams on Sunday and even with one of the best interior linemen of all time in Aaron Donald trying to stop it, the Rams, like other teams, were completely helpless.
The Eagles have crafted a huge advantage. Good for them.
Don't whine. Don't ban it. Figure out a way to stop it.
veryGood! (29)
Related
- Person accused of accosting Rep. Nancy Mace at Capitol pleads not guilty to assault charge
- At least 20 dead in school dorm fire in Guyana, officials say: This is a major disaster
- Sephora 24-Hour Flash Sale: 50% Off Buxom, Benefit Cosmetics, It Cosmetics, and More
- Elizabeth Olsen Is a Notorious Axe-Wielding Murderer In Love & Death Trailer
- 'No Good Deed': Who's the killer in the Netflix comedy? And will there be a Season 2?
- CIA seeks to recruit Russian spies with new video campaign
- Lyft is the latest tech company to cut jobs
- At-home DNA test kits can tell you many things. Race shouldn't be one of them
- North Carolina trustees approve Bill Belichick’s deal ahead of introductory news conference
- Bipartisan immigration bill would boost border funds, expand lawful migration and legalize some immigrants
Ranking
- Grammy nominee Teddy Swims on love, growth and embracing change
- Olympic Gymnast MyKayla Skinner Expecting First Baby With Husband Jonas Harmer
- Biden endorses plan to train Ukrainians on F-16 fighter jets
- Temporary ceasefire reached in Sudan fighting, U.S. says
- EU countries double down on a halt to Syrian asylum claims but will not yet send people back
- Need to charge your phone? Think twice — 'juice jackers' might come for you
- Can politicians catch up with AI?
- Reese Witherspoon and Jim Toth Break Up: A Look Back at Their Family Moments
Recommendation
Federal court filings allege official committed perjury in lawsuit tied to Louisiana grain terminal
Why Chanel West Coast Is Leaving Ridiculousness After 12 Years
Judge rules suspected Pentagon leaker Jack Teixeira will remain jailed before trial
Myanmar junta accused of blocking aid to Cyclone Mocha-battered Rohingyas as death toll climbs
Warm inflation data keep S&P 500, Dow, Nasdaq under wraps before Fed meeting next week
Baby dies, dozens feared dead after hippo charges and capsizes canoe on river in Malawi
U.S. deported 11,000 migrants in the week after Title 42 ended
Astronomers have some big gravitational wave news