Zach Ertz Ready to Turn Page, Apologies Have Been Made, and Fences Mended
PHILADELPHIA - Blonde hair isn’t the only new thing about Zach Ertz.
His attitude is different now, too.
The Eagles’ tight end and the organization have made up, following a tumultuous offseason in which the Eagles tried to deal the three-time Pro Bowler from 2018-2020.
No more hard feelings, no more worrying about his future.
Ertz is energized by working with the younger players on the team and an offseason spent rehabbing with his wife and USA women’s national soccer team star, Julie.
He said this is the most fun he’s had going to work than any point in his previous eight seasons.
And his play throughout training camp has reflected all of that.
“I’ve said all along, this is the place I want to be, this is the place I want to retire,” said Ertz on Wednesday, his first interview since his tearful good-bye in January, or at least what he thought was his good-bye.
“Those feelings haven’t changed … I’m moving on from everything that happened this offseason. There have been apologies, there have been things that we’ve mended. Ultimately, I’m here. I’m excited to be here. I’m excited to be a leader of this football team.”
Ertz didn’t want to comment on wearing his shorts inside out during camp, and preferred to keep much of what went on between himself and the organization private.
“This isn’t about me and rustling feathers,” he said. “I love this place. I love this game. I love this city. The business was going to be kept in-house.
“I just wanted to put myself in a situation where I’d given so much to the team for the past eight years, and they’ve given me so much for the past eight years, and I love this team at the end of the day. It was all about respecting that. This team is going to be a lot bigger than (No.) 86 going forward. I love this city too much for me to quote-unquote, burn it down, like some people wanted me to do at times and whatnot because ultimately, I love this place."
Zach Ertz
USA Today
GM Howie Roseman was always consistent in his offseason asking price when shopping Ertz. He simply wasn’t going to trade him for something he didn’t believe was fair value.
“This organization has believed in me, not only this first eight years of my career, but they probably believed in me more than anyone else did in this league,” said Ertz. “They were standing firm with what they believed was fair (in trade talks), and ultimately I can’t fault them for that.
“They know how I feel about this city. I truly love being here. What’s happened in the past is in the past. I’m not thinking about it. For me and my faith it’s all about forgiveness, forgiveness and who am I not to be able to extend a forgiving arm with everything I believe in my faith.”
Ertz has always had the approach of trying to be the best he can be, to help the team win games, but the enthusiasm for doing that seemed to wane when a contract extension could not be agreed upon during the 2020 season.
“The last we talked it was obviously an emotional time for me,” he said. “But things do change. Julie and I pick our words for the year, each and every year, going into the year. In December, that word was ‘trust.’ It was based on scripture Proverbs 3:5.
“While there were times when I’m wondering ‘what is going on?’ Ultimately, it was falling back on that. … I feel like this is one of the best camps I’ve had in my time here. I felt great."
He is just 29 catches way from sitting atop the franchise’s all-time receptions charts, breaking a record that has stood since Harold Carmichael caught 589 passes in an Eagles career that ended in 1983.
He has helped bring the city its first Super Bowl title, with two standout plays in Super Bowl LII that are easy to overlook with the Philly Special and the Brandon Graham strip sack turnover forced on Tom Brady in the way.
But it was Ertz who made a critical two-yard catch on fourth-and-one, and, on the same drive ultimately scored what proved to be the game-winning touchdown, an 11-yarder on third-and-seven that gave the Eagles the lead back at 38-33.
But that’s in the past. It’s about his future, now, and Ertz believes he still has plenty of NFL future left in his 30-year-old body, and it has been recharged by the youth on the team.
“It’s kind of been a new season, a new chapter, of my football career. I still feel like I have a lot of great football in me," he said. "I don’t think I’m anywhere close to being done.”
MORE: "Professional" Zach Ertz still Present - Sports Illustrated
Perhaps one of the changes in Ertz was an offseason spent rehabbing his ankle injury with his wife, Julie, who suffered an MCL injury prior to the Olympics and was rehabbing right next to him.
The power couple rehabbed together this offseason, which was spent living in former teammate Jordan Hicks’ house.
The Ertz’s had side-by-side treatment tables, prompting Zach to say “we called it couple’s therapy.”
Julie Ertz returned in time for Team USA’s first Olympic game, a 3-0 loss to Sweden. She played 45 minutes, despite supposedly being on a minutes count, according to Zach.
“She injects energy into that team,” said Ertz. “I think from afar, seeing just how much energy, how much juice she brought to that team, I was like, man, I can bring even more juice to this football team. I can gas people up even more.
“Our leadership styles are a little different. She’s very talkative, very vocal, whereas I’m more quiet, just want to lead by example. But ultimately, it’s going to make me a better leader in that regard.”
Ertz is indeed fully vested in the Eagles again, and the Eagles are in him as well.
How this story eventually ends – whether it’s allowing Ertz to reach free agency at the end of the year, with a trade deadline deal, or a new contract – remains to be seen.
Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Eagle Maven and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglemaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.
