WHEN THE FOX broadcast team called out that the officiating crew missed an Eagles false start on a tush push against the Chiefs in Week 2, it promptly ended a blissful summer reprieve from the heated discourse surrounding the play. But the Fox crew didn't mention another potential penalty brewing on the same play.
In the futile fight to stop the tush push in its two-ton tracks, some defenses are adopting an illegal tactic to try to confuse the offensive line into moving early, Eagles players, league sources and even an opponent say. In the NFL rulebook, such a ploy is called disconcerting signals and prompts a 15-yard penalty.