Philadelphia Eagles: Keeping Zach Ertz is the right move

After all of the rumors throughout the offseason that he was on his way out, Zach Ertz remains a member of the Philadelphia Eagles and darn it, it is the right move.

Of course it may have made sense in the offseason to test the waters, just to see what you could get for the eight year veteran. But now that we are in training camp, there is no reason to dump number 86 just to move him. His value will arguably exceed anything the Eagles would get in return at this point.

Sure the Birds are in the middle of a “retool”, and it does not seem likely that Ertz will be a part of the next great Eagles team; but that does not mean he can’t have a positive impact during the 2021 season.

With a young quarterback in Jalen Hurts set to take the reins for the Birds, it makes sense to keep as many weapons as possible for him to throw too; and it is not as if Ertz is just another guy.

Lets face it, 2020 was well, an incredibly bad season for the veteran tight end. This saw him only catch 36 of the 72 balls thrown his way for a measly 335 yards (9.5 yards per catch) and one touchdown. However, between 2015-2019 Zach Ertz averaged 86 receptions for 914 yards and six touchdowns per season.

One bad season which took place during one of, if not the most unprecedented times in our life time doesn’t just mean a player is not good any more.

Zach Ertz should remain with the Philadelphia Eagles for the 2021 NFL season.

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Do I believe that Zach Ertz is going to return to the elite status he held before the 2020 season? Probably not. But there is no reason to believe he would not be an asset to a team with basically an entire rookie coaching staff, essentially a rookie quarterback, and an incredibly young receiving core.

This is a Super Bowl hero we are talking about. I understand this is now a few years in the past, but Ertz stepped up in some of the biggest moments in Philadelphia Eagles history, and proved that he is as clutch as it gets.

The stability that Ertz will provide will be massive, and I am sure it will calm Jalen Hurts down a bit knowing he will have ol’ reliable to go to when things speed up and get tough.

Now in Training Camp donning a brand new blonde haired look, Ertz has said all the right things, has not been a distraction, and seemingly wants to be a part of this 2021 Eagles team. The fact that he did not drag his feet, openly complain to the media, and cause a huge distraction has to say something about the type of person and teammate he is.

There were times where it seemed the three time pro bowler was on his way out; heck there was even that moment where Ertz got incredibly emotional following the 2020 season when questioned about his future in Philadelphia. But he is still here, rocking midnight green, catching passes from (hopefully) the next great Eagles quarterback.

It has been a rocky offseason, but Zach Ertz is right where he belongs; here in the City of Philadelphia.