It’s a Miracle: Goodell Got Tush-Pushed!
May 26, 2025
In this era of media hyperbole, it’s hard to believe a football miracle took place that slipped through the drooling jowls of the many hype artists covering sports.
What happened last week when the NFL owners voted – barely – to allow the Tush Push for another season was a fantastic development for Eagles fans because it dealt a rare public defeat to Roger Goodell, the $62-mill-a-year empty suit who tried desperately to end the virtually unstoppable QB sneak devised by the Birds.
Roger Goodell never loses. He is a commissioner like no other, 19 years on the job and still raking in every penny for the billionaire owners who are his bosses. Many owners have faced off against him – Daniel Snyder and Jerry Jones most notably – with no one ever walking away a winner.
But 10 owners last week looked Goodell in the eye and said, for want of a better term, “Bleep you!” They understood that punishing a team for being better at something than all of their opponents was not a good reason to change the rules.
Before the vote, no one expected the Tush Push to survive, even though 24 of the 32 owners needed to approve its ban. We all just assumed that the all-powerful Goodell would have his way again.
And make no mistake, he wanted it gone. Here’s what he said about it last month at the NFL draft:
“A lot of coaches would tell you that’s not a part of football,” Goodell told Pat McAfee on April 25. “The second thing is really the safety of the game. And that’s of primary importance to us.”
All of the former players still trying to get compensated for their concussion issues must have had a great laugh at the latter remark. And my extensive investigation into this situation (I Googled a couple of stories) indicates that “a lot of coaches” is one non-coach named Roger Goodell.
In fact, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk – the most honest and connected media person covering the NFL – is reporting that Goodell coaxed the Green Bay Packers to file for the rule change. For the most part, the Packers don’t give a damn about the play themselves.
So what convinced 10 teams to go against the commissioner? The teams were the Ravens, Browns, Lions, Jaguars, Dolphins, Patriots, Saints, Jets, Titans and, duh, the Eagles.
My guess is, that Birds owner Jeff Lurie babbling for an hour about the intricacies of the play – and, no doubt, the brilliance of his team, starting with himself – cost more votes than he won. (There are unsubstantiated reports that an emergency supply of smelling salts was rushed to the meeting when some of the billionaires became to lose consciousness midway through the slog.)
My second guess is that retired Eagles hero Jason Kelce swung a couple of crucial votes with his far more concise and compelling argument for the play. He actually said last week that he would still be playing if all he had to do was block for the Tush Push.
Regardless of how the 10 teams got to that vote, it was awesome because it was a rare victory for justice and – even better – because it made Goodell look like a man who was losing his power, at least for one day.
Here’s the bottom line on the Tush Push: Roger Goodell wanted something very badly and didn’t get it. Jeff Lurie bloviated for an excruciating hour and somehow still won the argument.
If that’s not a football miracle, what is?
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Someone attacked me via email last week for seeking attention by always being negative. Obviously, this misguided soul is not aware that I have been this way for the past half-century.
I was trained to hold sports figures accountable.
Shame on me.
I am a 74-year-old curmudgeon who has been retired for 28 months. I got all the attention I ever wanted during my 33 years at WIP.
My only problem now is reading and listening to so many media people whose commitment to the truth is not so strong. This, by the way, is just about all of them. Unfortunately.
I could never say any of this when I was dependent on ratings, but the best way to tune out my negativity is to not listen to my occasional (unpaid) appearances on podcasts or to read this blog.
Problem solved.
Now here’s one more unwelcome dose of reality, if you can bear it. The Phillies have the best record in baseball right now, and that’s cool. It’s all any fan can hope for.
But their schedule has been so easy the past few weeks that they actually played a series over the weekend in a minor-league ballpark (Sacramento) against a glorified minor-league team (Oakland).
Throttling putrid ballclubs like Oakland, Colorado, Pittsburgh and the Rays in May is no guarantee of post-season success. Hell, those teams belong in minor-league cities permanently.
When I made a similar point after the Eagles went on their championship run last season against a parade of stiffs, many readers were fed up with my skepticism, even if it was based on simple logic.
Sorry. It’s too late for me to start drinking the Kool Aid now.
The good news is, readers and listeners have lots of options if they prefer their morning coffee served in rose-colored glasses.
Let’s check back with the Phillies in a few weeks after they face actual challenges from the Braves, Brewers, Cubs, Mets, Braves again and Padres in June.
If they still have the best record at the end of next month, I will be surprised, for two reasons.
First of all, the bullpen is Russian Roulette now that Jose Alvarado is gone for 80 games plus the post-season.
And second, manager Rob Thomson will find a way to blow it. Never has a manager done less and received more praise than Thomson is getting right now.
That’s the way I see it.
You should know I am still taking anti-depressants.
Imagine if I weren’t.
I have always suspected the Phillies obsession with analytics was a pandemic spreading through the entire organization, and now I have more evidence to support that belief.
In the top of the ninth inning on Sunday, right after Matt Strahm had blown a 4-3 lead against Oakland, the broadcast returned from commercial on NBC Sports Philadelphia with two highly confused announcers.
Here’s the way I remember their exchange:
Tom McCarthy: Closer Mason Miller is back on the mound for a third straight game.
Ben Davis: He threw 27 pitches on Friday night and 21 last night!
There is no way for me, in a blog, to simulate the disbelief in their voices. Just imagine the two broadcasters witnessing a lunar eclipse for the first time. Sheer astonishment.
My first thought was, McCarthy and Davis realize Rob Thomson would rather be waterboarded than ever use a reliever three games in a row. And both broadcasters, who were once major critics of analytics, acted as if Mason’s presence on the mound was a huge mistake.
My second thought was, hey, I guess Oakland’s manager (Mark Kotsay) is actually trying to win today’s game instead of applying some arbitrary – and scientifically unproven – limits on how and when to use players.
Twelve pitches later, Miller got the save, ending the Phils’ nine-game win streak.
Somehow, he was able to leave the field under his own power.
I am closely monitoring reports out of Sacramento today on Miller’s condition.
His family asks you to keep him in your thoughts and prayers.