Let’s not sugarcoat it: Mike Macdonald flipped his stance! The Seahawks’ head coach was once publicly in favor of the NFL’s most polarizing short-yardage play, the ‘tush push.‘ Now, he finds his team on the wrong side of a vote that could’ve helped preserve it. Notably, he’d spoken of the tush push as just another part of the game’s evolution. Seahawks general manager John Schneider shared a similar view. However, despite Macdonald’s and Schneider’s support earlier, apparently, they changed their mind. Also, Saquon Barkley dropped his two cents, too, but more on that later.
Notably, the Seahawks were among the 22 teams that voted to ban the tush push. ProFootballTalk posted directly on Twitter, remarking, “Both Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald and G.M. John Schneider have said they don’t oppose the tush push. The Seahawks voted to ban it anyway.” So, Seattle voted yes to banning the very play they had defended.
According to PFT’s Mike Florio, someone above Macdonald and Schneider pulled the plug. All signs point to Jody Allen, who holds final say over the Seahawks via the Paul G. Allen Trust.
Both Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald and G.M. John Schneider have said they don’t oppose the tush push. The Seahawks voted to ban it anyway. https://t.co/IcCgcyWJ0r
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) May 24, 2025
Speaking of the tush push, the ultra-physical, short-yardage play made legendary by the Philadelphia Eagles, Mike MacDonald earlier stated, “I think it’s a good play.” He continued, “I understand the positions people have with the health and safety of it… But it seems to me like there are enough plays where it feels like that isn’t the case right now.”
Schneider also supported it back in April, citing a lack of evidence for injury concerns. “The injury evidence is not as clear as the hip drop tackle… the videos are awful… but the medical portion wasn’t as clear on this,” he had said. However, now, with 13 of 16 NFC teams backing the ban, it is out of the question. The proposal narrowly missed passage, falling just short at 68.75% (24 out of 32 votes needed 75% approval).
The Green Bay Packers had initially proposed the ban in April 2025. While their original proposal failed with a 16-16 split, they submitted a revised version, seeking to ban all forms of pushing or pulling a ball carrier.
But, with the 22 votes, rather than practicing or strategizing, “tush push” has been voted out. While the Seahawks quietly reversed course, Saquon Barkley made no such compromise.
Saquon Barkley is undeterred on his stance
Playing with the Philadelphia Eagles, Barkley recently appeared on the Exciting Mics podcast to unapologetically back the tush push. “I think it’s soft, to be honest,” he said. “Everybody can do it. It’s not a play that we can only do.”
The play’s success, for him, stems from execution, not unfair advantage. “Everybody can do it… We happen to have one of the best and biggest O-lines, and Jalen Hurts can squat 600 pounds. That’s not our fault,” said Barkley. And he had receipts.
He pointed to Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, and other QBs who’ve tried the tush push and failed. It’s not a cheat code. It’s just what happens when elite talent meets elite coaching. “And the teams that want to get rid of it are the teams that gotta see us two or three times a year,” he remarked.
Out of the 16 NFC teams, only the Lions and Saints joined Philly in defending the tush push. Had the Seahawks voted against the ban, the league might not be sitting on a failed vote today. That’s how tight this was. The ban needed 24 votes to pass, and 22 teams voted for it.
While speaking at the NFL meeting and later on the ‘New Heights’ podcast, Jason Kelce defended the play, saying, ‘I think a regular short-yardage play is probably more unsafe than a tush push.’ With just two more teams voting against it, the tush push could already be out.
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