THE ATLANTA FALCONS , protecting a 7-3 lead, faced a fourth-and-1 at the Tampa Bay Buccaneers ' 47 with 9:03 left in the first half of their Week 1 matchup.

For the Philadelphia Eagles , the playcall would have been automatic: the tush push. And the result would have been nearly automatic: a first down. They've converted the play 96.6% of the time in fourth-and-1 scenarios since 2022. It has become so unstoppable that nearly two-thirds of NFL teams voted to ban it.

But Falcons coach Raheem Morris is no fan of the tush push, questioning its legality and wanting it banned. So instead, he called for a handoff to star running back Bijan Robinson , who was stopped for no gain. The Bucs scored on the ensuing possession en route to a 23-20 NFC South victory.

"There's just no other pla

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