By now, you've definitely heard.
The "tush push," or the Philadelphia Eagles' signature version of the quarterback sneak, was saved from elimination after a 22–10 vote at the NFL Owners meeting last Wednesday. The Birds had been lobbying for weeks to ensure the play's legality, but really pulled out the big guns when they called in Philly icon and former Eagles center Jason Kelce to advocate for the maneuver in front of its critics.
The meeting happened behind closed doors, so we aren't sure what exactly was said. But Kelce did share a bit as to what went down during the most recent episode of his New Heights podcast.
"The reason I was there was because there was a narrative out there that one of the reasons I retired was because of the play, or that I somehow felt like the play led to more injuries or was injured because of it," Kelce began, reiterating comments he made on last week's pod. "So I was really just there to offer my perspective on that stuff not being true, and the fact that I think it's a relatively safe play. I did go up there and talk after [team owner] Jeffrey Lurie started things off and opened everything up. I dispelled those rumors, as well as answered some questions about how the play is run.
"But for the most part, it was just awesome to witness, honestly. The legislative process of the NFL, how the owners vote, how these proposals come about. I couldn't help but think, 'I can't believe I'm in this room right now,' to be honest with you. There's hundreds of billions of dollars of wealth sitting here."
"I don't know if anybody's mind changed at all. Certainly not the majority of them," he continued later, alluding to how critics came in just two votes shy of a ban. "I took away from this meeting [that] all of these owners have good intentions. And not just in this proposal, in all the proposals.
"It was just awesome to witness and see how serious each one of these owners take all of these decisions and how it's going to affect the game, what could be byproducts of these changes. It was cool to listen and be in the room with. 'Cause I don't think that in a million years I'll ever be back in that room."
The future Hall of Famer also made clear that, despite some online rumors, he did not bring anyone to tears with his defense. Glad we cleared that up.
Watch his full recap below, starting at 2:54:
Although it may not have changed the final tally, bringing in Kelce, a 13-year Eagles star with plenty of experience executing the tush push, was a smart move from the Birds' front office. As Travis pointed out during Wednesday's episode, the elder Kelce is synonymous with the maneuver. If anyone can talk about its merits, it would be him.
Luckily for Philly fans, the push to ban the play was unsuccessful and the tush push will live to see another season. Now, it's up to everyone else in the league to figure out how to stop it.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jason Kelce Shares Details of Tush Push Defense During 'Awesome' NFL Owners Meeting.
