The Tush Push once felt like a cheat code. Quarterback Jalen Hurts under center, four Philadelphia Eagles teammates pushing in unison, and a first down almost every single time. Opposing coaches despised it, and some owners pushed to ban it multiple times, but the NFL came up short both times. And this year, no one even tried, at least in the NFL.

NFL executives in Indianapolis basically declared the play safe for another year. But the United Football League–FOX’s spring football property–announced it wasn’t standing for the Tush Push. When the UFL unveiled its sweeping 2026 rule changes on Tuesday, February 24, the tush push was banned outright.

“While the NFL no longer is discussing a Tush Push ban, the UFL will announce today that [it] is eliminating the Tush Push,” Adam Schefter highlighted the contrast on X.

While announcing the ban via a press release, the UFL left zero ambiguity about the play.

“The league has eliminated the Tush Push, a play in which, after the quarterback takes the snap, he immediately drives forward as the offensive line surges and is assisted by additional players behind him who physically push him forward into the surging offensive line,” the official release read.

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But the Tush Push ban was just the opening act. The UFL’s 2026 rule changes also introduced a four-point field goal for kicks from 60+ yards. They also banned punting inside the opponent’s 50-yard line outside the final two minutes of each half. This pushes the players to opt for more field goal attempts and go for it on fourth downs.

What’s more, the UFL now allows teams a choice between a 1-point kick from the 33-yard line, a 2-point conversion from the 2-yard line, or a 3-point conversion from the 8-yard line. Another interesting change is that now UFL players need only one foot inbounds for a catch. For a league built to keep boldly experimenting, these new rules bring plenty of excitement.

What about the NFL, though? The Green Bay Packers had tried to end the Tush Push at the 2025 Spring meetings. Their proposal received 22 votes, two short of the 24 required to pass. And now, heading into the 2026 season, the teams seem to have given up on banning it.

“There’s no team proposal that I’ve seen from it,” NFL Competition Committee co-chair Rich McKay said at the NFL combine. “So, I wouldn’t envision it. But you never know.”

Meanwhile, NFL EVP Troy Vincent noted that the deadline for proposing a ban has passed, while reiterating that no proposal has reached them this offseason. The league is instead exploring other rule changes: whether replay officials can flag non-football incidents, and reviewing shoulder pad designs for player safety concerns. For now, at least in the NFL, the Tush Push continues to roll on. But there may be a reason no team filed a formal proposal this offseason to stop Jalen Hurts & Co.

Tush Push: the play that ate itself

Quite simply put, the play has just lost its teeth. The Eagles had perfected it under Jalen Hurts, converting at a staggering 82% rate through 2024 and riding it all the way to a Super Bowl LIX title. But then in 2025, the NFL recorded 112 Tush Pushes, up from 101 the season before. Many teams, like the Buffalo Bills, developed their own variations, but the overall conversion rate slipped to 76.8%.

For Philly, the fall was steeper. Last season, the Eagles only converted the play 63.6% (21-of-33 attempts). A fumble on the play had notably cost the Eagles a November loss to the Chicago Bears. After that play, even Hurts admitted it was “becoming tougher and tougher” to execute.

Meanwhile, Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni had already seen it coming. And just like the years before, Philly might double down on refining its quarterback sneak even more this season.

“Just like how we do with anything,” Sirianni had noted last season. “They adjust, you adjust, you try to make compliments off of it, as many as you can, to keep them honest. All the different things that you do to help. I know it’s a unique play that gets a lot of attention and a lot of talk, but you handle it the very same way.”

But Philly’s opponents didn’t just adjust; they adopted. While the Packers lobbied the hardest to ban the Tush Push, the Seattle Seahawks and the Pittsburgh Steelers were busy running their own tight end variations. When your rivals weaponize your signature play against you, it stops being a nuclear option. It becomes just another formation, just football.

The NFL didn’t kill the Tush Push (despite trying to in the past). While the NFL quietly neutralized it over seasons, the UFL just made the announcement official.