They had replacements for the top two principals that made it work in this game. Which means it’s reproducible and teams should spend at any costs to do so because it confers unfair advantages.
Which division rivals know it’s coming, line up offsides, and still can’t stop it, it should become the focus of any offense until banned.
1. Before 2006, it was illegal to assist the runner. The NFL just decided to legalize it, because they thought it was hard to call.
2. Before the assisting the runner rule change (i.e. from 1800s through 2005), there was some exploitation that teams would do by having a blocker sort of hit the pile that a runner was stuck in, ostensibly to block, but realistically pushing the ball carrier forward also. However, now that it's actually legal, teams do on purpose organized QB sneaks with a pusher.
3.
It would be very simple for the NFL to go back to the traditional pre 2006 rule. Sure there would be some cases of [2] that might be harder to call. But it would stop the outright tush push strategy, that (I think) it was never an objective to actively incentivize.
4. Note that
not all of the skill/strategy/expertise of a team like Philly would go away if the tush push were illegal. QB sneaks are an old part of the game for short yardage. And having a low/large offensive line fire straight ahead is a very typical goal line, short yardage strategy. So, they would still retain a lot of advantage, given how good they are now. They just would not be allowed to push the runner forward.
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Similarly, it is hard to catch offensive holding that is done inside the pads, but it is still illegal to grasp the jersey. If the NFL actually made it legal there would be all out Cosmi-ing of every defender and even more of a change in strategy and more of an advantage to the O line. Note that before 1977, open handed blocking itself was illegal...grasping the jersey is still illegal but now harder to call. To the extent that many football fans have started to think holding ITSELF is legal. E.g. I see comments of "what a great block" on obvious (in replay) holding. And hatred for refs for sometimes calling the illegal-but-harder-to-catch holding instances.
In reality, almost every recent rule change has been to aid the offense. In addition to the major change to blocking rules in 1977 that made legal blocks easier (and illegal ones much harder to catch), there was a major change to pass defense rules in 1977. You used to be able to chip the receiver as long as the ball was not in the air, no matter how far downfield.
(I actually played this way in HS as the rule change had not percolated down yet when I played SS. Used to abuse much larger TEs...I knew they wouldn't be getting the ball anyway and by the TEs running downfield, I would be out of position for most tackling....so I just got my inner Pat Fisher out by hitting the big guys. So at least I got some contact in...used to really piss the TEs off. I wasn't hurting them...but they didn't like it anyways.)
Most of the recent rules on protecting QBs and receivers and kick recipients are to benefit the offense. And you totally see offenses exploiting them now. Late slides by QBs for instance or dancing near the line. I definitely don't agree with hitting a player after the ball is dead, when the defender has time to stop the contact. But I don't think you should fault the defender from starting the split second action to tackle or knock out of bounds a player that is still live, when the defender has to make the decision. But I see fans all the time now who think a DB is "dirty" when he hits a QB that makes a last second slide (sometimes not even hips on the ground at the instance contact happens...same with the offsides dancing). This is really inhibiting normal downhill tacking by a safety coming from distance. Here, just a rules interpretation to caution offenses on late slides and sideline games (that they are fair game and fouls won't be called, for defenders that initiate the motion to hit, while ball is live) would be enough to change the strategy. But then most casual fans "get wet" (Cf. Draft Day movie, not sexual) from offense, not defense. Just look how ESPN chat shows position competitions as QB versus QB (as if they boxed each other.)
