In his long-awaited debut with the Minnesota Vikings, former BYU football captain Tyler Batty made quite the splash.
He may not have lit up the box score, but his value was seen and felt in a most unusual way.
After the 2025 NFL Draft had passed and Batty’s name wasn’t called, he signed with Minnesota as an undrafted free agent. The signing came to little surprise as Batty’s college career and accolades precede him: All-Big 12 First Team honors and team captain recognition on an 11-2 season, among others.
Batty suffered a knee injury in the final preseason game against the Tennessee Titans and was on injured reserve until he was activated to play on Oct. 18.
Going into Week 7, the Vikings were 3-2, tied for last place with the Chicago Bears in a competitive NFC North division. Near the end of the first quarter, the Eagles faced third down with a single yard to go on their own 43-yard line.
If you’ve been keeping up with the NFL the past few seasons, you probably have an idea of what will happen next. Philadelphia started to initiate the “tush push.” Also known as the “brotherly shove,” it’s essentially a QB dive or sneak where they instead send all players to support and force the QB through the line. It’s ultra-efficient, a signature piece of the Eagles’ offense, and has been the bane of opposing defenses and fans for years.
To combat this, some coordinators and teams around the league have adopted the “if you can't beat them, join them” philosophy, such as Buffalo. Other squads have tried to ban the play altogether from football, when the Green Bay Packers submitted such a proposal to the NFL’s competition committee in February 2025.
Then there’s the Minnesota Vikings, who sent Tyler Batty in his first NFL snaps to try the impossible: stop the tush push.
Batty turned perpendicular to the offensive line and lay down and got on all fours. Just as fans everywhere were confused, so was the Eagles' O-line. The confusion caused a delay of game and a flag was thrown, forcing Philadelphia five yards back. Despite his genuinely courageous efforts against one of the greatest offensive lines of all time, the Eagles still managed to convert the yard on a tush push later in the game.
Officially, Batty only recorded one tackle for the game, but his debut is undoubtedly one that will not be forgotten. Not just for BYU fans, as they add another alumnus to the deep legacy of Cougars in the league, but for the NFL as a whole.
The Eagles look poised for another playoff run this year, and with it comes the nuisance of the unstoppable play. Batty’s bizarre undertaking put the whole league on notice, giving defensive coordinators something outside of the box to finally put an end to the perfect third-down conversion.
For Batty’s NFL journey, this could be just the first of many memorable plays.