Sean Payton leaves no doubt where he stands on NFL’s decision regarding the ‘Tush Push’
Sean Payton left nothing to the imagination with his comments.
The Denver Broncos head coach is known for wearing his emotions on his sleeve, leaving nothing to the imagination about how he feels. During the NFL Combine, Payton was his usual self.
From deflecting blame toward reporter Mike Klis after Payton made the boneheaded mistake of commenting on quarterback Bo Nix’s injury before Nix could speak. Then, Payton made his feelings known about the NFL’s decision to keep the Tush Push for another season.
For Payton, it’s not about health and safety, believing that there would be a completely different reason for why the play might get banned in future seasons.
“I don’t think the push sneak, look, I think if that ever goes away, it’s not a health and safety thing,” Payton said. “We discussed that last year for two hours, and we just adopted 1,000 more kick returns. Which play do you think is more of a health risk? 1,000 more kick returns. I think if we choose to ever move on from it won’t be because of health and safety, it’ll just be like we don’t like it, which is okay.”
Tush Push is here to stay, at least for 2026
According to Competition Committee chair Rich McKay, the group has not yet seen a rules proposal for the banning of the Tush Push this year. Which means that the play has not been brought to the table for a rule change so far this offseason. Adam Schefter confirmed the news.
“No team has offered a proposal to ban the Tush Push, and there has been no recent discussion about changing the rule, Rich McKay told reporters.”
Last season, the Green Bay Packers proposed to ban the tush push as a play, but it didn’t pass. Teams still used it as an opportunity to pick up short yardage situations for first downs or touchdowns. It fell two votes short of the 75 percent threshold, meaning the play could stand.
According to SumerSports AI, the Broncos used the Tush Push 12 times in the 2025 regular season. The model refers to the short-yardage QB sneak play typically used in goal-line or short-yardage situations where the team needs 1-2 yards for a first down or a touchdown.
The Philadelphia Eagles used it the most, running it for 25 plays. The next four teams are the Buffalo Bills (19 plays), San Francisco 49ers (19 plays), Los Angeles Chargers (16 plays), and the Seattle Seahawks (15 plays).
The Tush Push has been effective, just not as effective as before
Teams used the tush push 112 times last season, which was up from 101 during the 2024 season. Additionally, the effectiveness dipped, according to Yahoo Sports, with teams getting a first down using the play just 75 percent of the time, which was at 82 percent from 2022 to 2024.
With how much Payton doesn’t like to run the play, it’s obvious that his feelings are against the use of the play. Not enough to warrant wanting it banned, but it’s clear how he feels.
At the end of the day, Payton doesn’t have to love the Tush Push; he just has to defend it.
The numbers show it’s still being used widely across the league, even if the success rate has dipped slightly. And until a team actually submits a proposal and 25 owners agree to eliminate it, the play isn’t going anywhere, at least not for next season.
So whether Payton rolls his eyes or not, the reality is simple: if the situation calls for one yard, coaches across the NFL, including his, will keep dialing it up. Not because they have to like it, just because it works enough to matter.
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Sean Payton left nothing to the imagination.
