The Philadelphia Eagles were a yard from icing a season opening win in Sao Paulo.
The Eagles, revamped after spiraling out of control to wrap up a disappointing 2023 season, mounted a comeback to take a late 31-29 lead over the Green Bay Packers. With less than a minute to play and the Packers out of timeouts, they faced third-and-goal at the Green Bay one-yard line. A touchdown here would effectively end the game, dashing whatever meager comeback hopes Jordan Love and the Packers may have had.
Jason Kelce, the future Hall of Fame center who’d been instrumental to the Eagles’ success, knew exactly what the situation called for. He wanted the rugby scrum-style collapsing black hole that sucked in defenders and spit his quarterback out two yards later. He wanted the “tush push.”
https://twitter.com/JasonKelce/status/1832261705864188147
Instead, Saquon Barkley dove on a botched snap behind the line of scrimmage, forcing a Jake Elliott chip shot field goal. Kelce, realizing why head coach Nick Sirianni may have called a more traditional handoff, had the perfect response on Twitter.
https://twitter.com/JasonKelce/status/1832262207825961206
In the end, it didn’t matter. Love got the Packers to midfield with a big completion to Jayden Reed on the ensuing drive. Unfortunately, he left the field due to injury the following play. Backup Malik Willis threw an incompletion and took a sack and Philadelphia emerged victorious, 34-29. Still, the team’s lack of tush push success was certainly one narrative that will follow the Eagles back from Brazil.