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Sean Payton and the Broncos on Sunday in Philadelphia may well have to defend the “Tush Push” at some point in a critical short-yardage situation.
It wouldn’t be the first time Payton, the Denver head coach, has defended the play this year.
He told reporters Tuesday that he “stood up in favor” of the play this spring when the NFL considered banning it. A proposal put forth by Green Bay in May would have reverted the league’s rulebook to a previous version in which teammates pushing forward a ball carrier in any capacity would be illegal.
The NFL’s ownership group voted 22 teams in favor of banning and 10 against, coming up two votes shy of the majority needed for a change.
One of the chief reasons cited by the league for promoting the ban was player health and safety. That, to Payton, did not pass the smell test.
“It’s pretty simple: The powers that be don’t want it for aesthetic reasons or competitive reasons or because it’s hard to officiate, etc.,” Payton said Tuesday. “But I’ve been involved in those meetings for a long time, and when all of a sudden health and safety was pulled into that — which might be the safest play in football — my (b.s.) nose kind of went up.
“Look, it’s a quarterback sneak.”
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Payton also pointed to a touchdown the Eagles scored last week in which they faked the Tush Push and instead handed the ball to running back Saquon Barkley, who walked into the end zone without a Tampa defender anywhere near him.
“It was a sweep to the left,” Payton said. “I’m one that looks at it, as long as the line of scrimmage is clean, it’s a well-run quarterback sneak. And when you really evaluate it, it’s more the technique of the sneak than the push.”
Interestingly, the Broncos were not among the 10 teams reported to have voted against the ban.
Payton previously served on the NFL’s competition committee but has often said he became disillusioned with the work because he felt it didn’t ultimately have much impact on whether change actually happened.
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Parker Gabriel
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