Rich McKay: Not expecting tush push ban proposal this year - ESPN

INDIANAPOLIS — NFL competition committee co-chairman Rich McKay said Sunday that he is not anticipating an attempt to ban the tush push this year, one year after debate over the short-yardage play roiled the NFL.

«There's no team proposal that I've seen from it,» McKay said following a day of meetings at the NFL combine. «So, I wouldn't envision it. But you never know.»

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in September that there were no assurances of reviving the tush push debate in 2026, as sources cited the vitriol of last year's discussions and the eventual failure to garner enough support for a change.

The play has largely been utilized by two teams: the Philadelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bills. Overall, the NFL saw slightly more tush pushes in 2025 (112) than in 2024 (101). The Eagles (27) and Bills (17) by far led the league in attempts, but other teams began experimenting with using tight ends rather than quarterbacks to take the snap — most notably the Pittsburgh Steelers and Seattle Seahawks. The conversion rate was slightly lower in 2025, as teams made a first down on 76.8% of attempts compared with 82% from 2022 through 2024.

Although there have been some subjective concerns about the safety of the play, the NFL has yet to publicize any health data to support those suspicions.

The 2025 debate was fierce. The Green Bay Packers directly targeted the play in February 2025 by making a proposal with unusually specific language to ban it. The Packers' proposal called for a prohibition on offensive players immediately pushing a teammate who is lined up directly behind the snapper and receiving the snap.

NFL rules require approval from 24 owners to enact a rule change, and only 16 supported the ban as written at the time. The