Buccaneers boastfully troll Eagles, NFL with 810-pound solution to stopping Philly’s ‘tush push’

Ryan OLeary

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Buccaneers boastfully troll Eagles, NFL with 810-pound solution to stopping Philly’s ‘tush push’ image

Only two of the NFL’s 32 teams are uniquely qualified to weigh in on the now world famous “tush push” play: the originators and the destroyers.

The Philadelphia Eagles are, of course, the former, turning their short-yardage staple into one of the most automatic conversion plays in NFL history. 

As for the destroyers? Until Philly can prove otherwise, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers are claiming that throne. 

After the NFL’s owners voted against Green Bay’s proposal to ban the “tush push” and any other play that involves "assisting the runner,” most of the online trolling was directed at a Packers team that lost to the Eagles, 22-10, in last year’s wild-card playoff round. Philly’s own social media team had the troll job of the day, immediately posting a photo of quarterback Jalen Hurts vs. the  Packers with the two-word message: Push on.

The Buccaneers, however, took it a step further, trolling the Eagles and the entire NFL for being the only team that can stop Philly’s now iconic play. The Bucs took multiple shots at both the Eagles and the league, first sharing a clip of “How to stop the tush push” with 346-pound nose tackle Vita Vea stonewalling the line of scrimmage and linebacker K.J. Britt (now a member of the Miami Dolphins) crashing the line horizontally and pulling Hurts back against the grain to stop the ball from reaching the goal line.

The Bucs had a separate post boasting Vea and new 464-pound defensive tackle Desmond Watson — the heaviest player all-time to sign an NFL contract — as the new kryptonite for the tush push in 2025. Watson has reportedly shed considerable weight since joining the Bucs as an undrafted rookie out of Florida, but the poundage in Wednesday’s social post featured two gigantic humans who weighed in at a combined 810 pounds in 2024.

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Tampa Bay has earned the right to trash talk when it comes to stopping the Eagles. The Bucs were one of the few teams to handle Philly in 2024 — stomping the Eagles 33-16 in Week 4. In 2023, the Bucs blasted the Eagles out of the playoffs, 32-9, in the NFC wild-card round. Including the postseason, the Eagles have won just one of their past six meetings with the Bucs dating back to 2021.

These teams will renew their quasi-rivalry in Week 4 this coming season, back at Raymond James Stadium. We’ll see if Tampa's current victory lap pushes on in September.

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Ryan OLeary

Ryan O'Leary has spent his entire professional career in sports multimedia, working as journalist, editor, podcaster, and in live events as a content manager and show emcee. His career highlights include working as a podcast host and audio editor for USA TODAY Sports Media Group, where he led a series of NFL podcasts for the company’s top-performing NFL sites. A born and raised New Englander, Ryan’s career kicked-off in newspapers after graduating from the University of New Hampshire with a degree in journalism. He developed an affinity for small-town youth, high school and college sports, while also realizing his childhood dream of covering the Patriots in multiple AFC Championship Games. Ryan enjoys kicking it with family and friends, beating his dad and brother in chess, and arguing with anyone crazy enough to insist that Tom Brady isn’t the GOAT.