Down by a score of 14-10 against the Los Angeles Rams, the Philadelphia Eagles advanced all the ball all the way down to the Rams' one-yard line. Two seconds remained on the clock before halftime. Everyone in the stadium knew what was coming next.
The variety of QB sneak that Jalen Hurts and the Eagles run has captured the NFL's attention going back to last season. Hurts crouches behind his offensive line, in tight splits, and with teammates at his rear to support, the mass of players pushes ahead. Many spectators have likened it to a rugby scrum.
So, what does Philly call this unstoppable play? The Tush Push? The Brotherly Shove? “Not that,” Hurts responded to those suggestions in his postgame comments, courtesy of Delaware News Journal's Martin Frank. The Eagles, powered by Hurts' prowess running the football, defeated the Rams on the road 23-14 to improve to 5-0.
The play might not have a witty moniker yet, but it sure does work. Hurts himself said that this QB sneak is “something we've been able to do at a high level.”
“It's clear that it doesn't always work for everyone else, so we just want to continue to execute whenever it's called.” Hurts continued. “…We just want to continue to grow. It's truly about growing.”
Not only does it not always work for other NFL teams, but it might be downright dangerous. The New York Giants attempted their version of the play on Monday Night Football and emerged from the play with injuries to TE Daniel Bellinger and C John Michael Schmitz.
The play has drawn criticism and calls for the NFL to ban the play. But considering how other teams have fared, the play doesn't seem unfair at its core. It's just unfair how good the Eagles are at executing it.