Howie Roseman Enlisting Zach Ertz's Aid in Trying to Keep Carson Wentz
Momentum seems to be building toward a divorce between Carson Wentz and the Eagles, a separation that the Eagles aren’t quite willing to accept, yet.
Sources close to the team have indicated that general manager Howie Roseman talked recently to tight end Zach Ertz about how they can make things work with their disgruntled quarterback.
Ertz and Wentz developed a close connection when Wentz arrived in 2016, so it’s probably not a surprise that the GM would try to leave no stone unturned in his quest to try to make things right with the quarterback he forked over a fortune to in the summer of 2019.
Even if that means trying to get Wentz’s good friend to step in.
What complicates things even further is that Roseman may be forced to trade the veteran Pro Bowl tight end, understanding he likely cannot afford Ertz any longer with a salary cap bursting at the seams.
As for Wentz, a potential trade is not on the table just yet.
“That is not anything we are talking about right now,” said the GM when asked to confirm that he hasn’t ruled out trading Wentz. “We are talking about a guy that's immensely talented, has a great work ethic and doing whatever we can to put him in the best possible situation to be successful…
“I think Carson, anyone who knows Carson, knows how strong of a person he is and knows how much he believes in his own abilities. In terms of why we didn't have a good season, it's not just on one player, and I think that when you look at it, the team as a whole didn't perform up to expectations. The moves that we made didn't perform up to expectations, and to put it on Carson isn't fair.”
Asking Ertz for help can also be construed as a Hail Mary shot at trying to keep Wentz in Philadelphia, so the GM is leaving no stone unturned as he tries to find a way to keep Wentz in Philadelphia.
Ertz said on Monday that he and Roseman have a good relationship. In fact, he called it great despite what looked to be an argument between the two during training camp this past summer.
“He’s someone who took a chance on me when I was 22 years old, him and Coach Kelly brought me in (as a second-round pick in 2013) together,” said Ertz. “I’m not someone to hold grudges by any means, and I never got to that point where I feel I needed to hold a grudge. We have a really good relationship. I have a really good relationship with all the people in the building because we’ve been through so much together.
“I truly love everything this organization stands for and a lot of it is due to Mr. (Jeffrey) Lurie, Howie and Doug (Pederson) run it a certain way.”
Rosman also spoke equally highly of Ertz.
“Zach is one of the truly great guys that we've had in this organization in the 21 years I've been here,” he said.
It’s clear the Eagles want Wentz back. And maybe that would have been possible had the franchise moved on from head coach Doug Pederson, whose decision – and his decision alone – to park Wentz on the bench, making him the fall guy for a season that took too many left turns to count.
The situation may be untenable, though, and Wentz could force the Eagles’ hand by publicly requesting a trade.
So, Roseman turned to Ertz.
The tight end was asked if he had seen last weekend’s report that Wentz would request a trade.
“I haven’t spoken to him as to what his plan is for the future,” said Ertz on Monday. “This week has honestly been a lot of reflection, but I’m not going to be the spokesperson for Carson.”
Roseman is hoping that Ertz can at least be the go-between.
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