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Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo Says Roger Goodell Doesn’t Like Eagles’ Tush Push

Russo drops surprising comment on 'First Take.'

Kyle Koster

Chris Russo weighs in on the Tush Push.
Chris Russo weighs in on the Tush Push. / First Take on X
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The tush push is under the microscope in what serves as the perfect late-February NFL story. The Green Bay Packers submitted a proposal to ban the short-yardage play, causing all kinds of opinions to fly. First Take dove into the issue on Wednesday with Chris "Mad Dog" Russo arguing in the negative.

"I don't like the play at all," Russo said. "It's too much of a rugby play to me. I don't think you should be able to touch a quarterback or running back behind the line of scrimmage. It just feels a little rinky-dink."

"Throw in what Washington did in the championship game with all the offsides, which made it even more complicated, and I heard Goodell hates it," Russo continued.

Russo dropping this information as a bit of an aside during a debate show is interesting because it certainly seems noteworthy that the commissioner of the NFL has not just a stance on the play, but a strong one. If that is indeed accurate, he'd have a lot of company from football fans who don't love the mashing of bodies rugby-style. He'd also have a lot of company and a worthwhile stance if he sided with the faction that believes the impetus should be on the defense to figure out how to stop it in order to make it less appealing.

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Kyle Koster
KYLE KOSTER

Kyle Koster is an assistant managing editor at Sports Illustrated covering the intersection of sports and media. He was formerly the editor in chief of The Big Lead, where he worked from 2011 to '24. Koster also did turns at the Chicago Sun-Times, where he created the Sports Pros(e) blog, and at Woven Digital.

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