The seemingly invincible Philadelphia Eagles have turned human. Their star quarterback, Jalen Hurts, confirmed that defenses are cracking their power play: the tush push. His own words reveal the growing struggle.

“It’s becoming tougher and tougher,” Hurts said. “But ultimately, me holding onto the ball, that’s something I can control.”

Let’s rewind and find out how the Bears cracked it. The moment came late in the third quarter at the Linc. They lined up for third-and-1 at the Chicago Bears’ 12-yard line. This was prime tush push territory for the Iggles.​

Hurts took the snap and dove forward hard. His teammates shoved from behind with power. However, Bears cornerback Nahshon Wright read it perfectly. He burst from the edge and attacked the pile. Wright reached in and yanked the ball free from Hurts’ grip. 

It flipped the game into a 24-15 loss for the Eagles. But despite two straight losses to the Bears and the Cowboys, Hurts has produced decent stats this year.

He has piled up 2,514 passing yards through 12 games with 19 touchdowns, a solid mark. His two interceptions mark a career low for the two-time Pro Bowler. Yet the QB fears that push play brings ball security problems.

“It’s been like that for a very long time,” Hurts revealed.

The push play has been under heavy scrutiny since the offseason. The attempt to ban it failed, then came the officiating mistakes, and now defenses are finally cracking the code. Still, Hurts is not worried about all that; the only thing he wants to fix is something else.

Jalen Hurts calls out late whistle, takes responsibility for fumble against Bears

The push play had a similar drama against the New York Giants in Week 8. Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux stripped the ball from Hurts. The referees ruled that Hurts’ forward progress had been stopped and blew the whistle quickly. That nullified the turnover. But that didn’t happen against the Bears.

“I was hoping that it was stopped, but it wasn’t,” Hurts added. “It was kind of similar to the New York [Giants] game except that they just didn’t blow the whistle as soon. That’s not to point the finger at anyone else.”

While Hurts indirectly referenced the timing of the whistle this time, he clearly took full responsibility for the fumble.

“I have to hold onto the ball. It definitely presents itself as an issue and it always has. It’s just never gotten us and so today it got us and it’s something that I need to tighten up,” Hurts admitted.

Fumbles have been an ongoing concern for Hurts since his rookie season in 2020. He has consistently had nine fumbles every season. Right now, he’s at six. The Eagles have only recovered one of those. 

Despite his solid passing stats and leadership, ball security remains a glaring issue. The Eagles are 8-4 and atop the NFC East after two recent losses. They need to buckle up as the Cowboys are on a roll with three straight wins.