B/R Suggests Cardinals Trade Zach Ertz
The Arizona Cardinals are looking towards the future - that was made evident by their moves this past offseason which involved clearing cap space and acquiring premium draft picks past 2023.
The job of Cardinals general manager Monti Ossenfort is never done. Through helping trim the roster down to 53 players ahead of the regular season and managing a massive scouting department that is already deep into the 2024 draft class, Ossenfort isn't exactly on the golf course every day.
That includes current management of the team and making potential moves that will benefit the Cardinals not only this season but beyond as well.
We saw previous GM Steve Keim wheel in a few notable names via trade, one of which is current tight end Zach Ertz, who has served as Arizona's TE1 since arriving from the Philadelphia Eagles.
Now, one prominent outlet believes the Cardinals should consider shipping him out.
In Bleacher Report's recent article tabbing one player each team should trade, Ertz was Arizona's top candidate.
"Arizona is a young team that is developing for the future more than winning the Super Bowl or even competing for the playoffs this season. So, keeping around a tight end who turns 33 years old in November and only has two years left on his contract doesn't make a ton of sense, especially since they have a second-year player behind him," wrote author Matt Holder.
"Adam Caplan of Pro Football Network reported last month that the Cardinals will expand sophomore tight end Trey McBride's role this season. One way to accomplish that is to trade the guy who is in front of him on the depth chart.
"Ertz had 47 catches for 406 yards and four touchdowns in 10 games last season, so he can contribute to a contending team's offense while giving Arizona more draft picks to build toward the future."
Are the Cardinals truly confident in McBride?
The Colorado State product got off to a slow start last season and didn't display much after being the team's top draft pick. Tight ends typically take time to develop in the league, though one of the main reasons Arizona felt comfortable with McBride was Ertz's presence.
While Ertz is recovering from a torn ACL/MCL suffered last season, he was recently activated from the PUP list and could reportedly be ready for Week 1 of the regular season.
McBride has struggled to stay healthy during most of training camp and did not play in the team's preseason opener last week.
According to Spotrac, the Cardinals have a potential out in Ertz's deal after this season that would allow them to eat only $5 million in dead cap space.
Perhaps a move happens then, though it's tough to imagine Ertz being traded at this point in time.
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