Inside The Vikings

Vikings broke out a unique defensive look against Eagles' tush push

Brian Flores and the Vikings got creative when trying to stop the Eagles' controversial short-yardage play.
Will Ragatz|
The Vikings attempting to stop the Eagles' infamous tush push.
The Vikings attempting to stop the Eagles' infamous tush push. | NFL on FOX, Ari Meirov on X

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Minnesota Vikings

No one in the NFL has been able to stop the "tush push," the Eagles' controversial quarterback sneak play where Jalen Hurts gets shoved from behind in short-yardage situations. But that doesn't mean they haven't tried.

Brian Flores and the Vikings showed up to Sunday's game against Philadelphia with a creative plan for how they were going to attempt to stop it. When the Eagles first went to the play on a fourth and short near midfield on the game's opening possession, the Vikings did something unusual. They had a defender, rookie Tyler Batty, lie down in front of the ball.

The goal, it seems, was to simply occupy the space in front of Eagles center Cam Jurgens, given how important that space is to the success of the play. The Vikings then had all of their other defensive linemen pinch down into the middle of the line and try to get some push of their own.

Despite the unique alignment, the Eagles still were able to convert — but it was close. It was ruled a first down and wasn't reviewed. With so many bodies crammed into a small space, it's hard to tell if Hurts truly did break the plane of the line to gain with the football. The Eagles went on to score on the game's opening possession and take a 7-0 lead.

Later in the first quarter, the Eagles went to the tush push again, but they committed a false start before they could get the snap off. NFL teams facing Philadelphia have made a point of wanting officials to keep an eye on possible offsides alignments or false starts before or during the play.

The Vikings' bigger issue in the first half against the Eagles is that Carson Wentz has thrown two interceptions against his old team, including a pick-six. They trail 14-3 to the Eagles as of this story's publication early in the second quarter.

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Will Ragatz
WILL RAGATZ

Will Ragatz is a senior writer for Vikings On SI, who also covers the Twins, Timberwolves, Gophers, and other Minnesota teams. He is a credentialed Minnesota Vikings beat reporter, covering the team extensively at practices, games and throughout the NFL draft and free agency period. Ragatz attended Northwestern University, where he studied at the prestigious Medill School of Journalism. During his time as a student, he covered Northwestern Wildcats football and basketball for SB Nation’s Inside NU, eventually serving as co-editor-in-chief in his junior year. In the fall of 2018, Will interned in Sports Illustrated’s newsroom in New York City, where he wrote articles on Major League Baseball, college football, and college basketball for SI.com.

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