Zach Ertz Wants to Remain with Eagles but Doesn't Believe Feeling is Mutual
PHILADELPHIA – New contracts are being handed out all around the NFL.
Most recently, Texans quarterback Deshaun Watson got his. So did Cardinals receiver DeAndre Hopkins and Browns running back Kareem Hunt.
Then there are the ones that went out earlier this summer to tight ends Travis Kelce and George Kittle.
Eagles tight end Zach Ertz still waits.
He may be waiting a while after the Eagles came in with what was reportedly a low-ball offer last week that forced negotiations to come to come to a halt for the three-time Pro Bowler who owns the NFL record for most catches by a tight end in a single season at 116.
“I said all along I want to be here for the long run,” said Ertz between the team’s walkthrough and the regular practice on Thursday. “I don’t know for sure if that feeling is mutual, but I know I’m going to play this year like it is my last year and I’m going to leave everything I possibly have in the tank for this team and this city because that’s what this city deserves, nothing less.”
Ertz turned down a deal with the Eagles last November, ostensibly preferring to wait to see what bar Kittle and Kelce would set.
The tight end signed a five-year contract extension worth $42.5 million on Jan. 25, 2016, a deal that he has restructured a couple of times since in order to give the Eagles salary cap flexibility. He is signed through 2021, with a cap hit of $12.4 this year and next.
There’s a blueprint to a new deal now, however. A very expensive blueprint, yes, with Kelce, 31, getting a four-year, $57.25 million deal on Aug. 14 and Kittle, 27, getting a five-year, $75M deal, also on Aug. 14.
“I think everyone has their side of the story,” said Ertz. “I don’t want to get into the exact details, but I don’t think it should be that hard to get a deal done now, but at the same time, now that the season is starting, I can’t really focus on that.”
Ertz, 29, said there were times during camp where he let the contract situation into his head, and that caused a disruption in his focus. He has moved past that, though.
“I really just had to talk to a couple people and kind of reset my mind, lean into my faith that I can’t really control this situation and I’m going to trust in the Lord with this thing, whether it’s Philly, hopefully, I want to be here, or wherever it is,” he said. “I can’t control that. I’m just going to do whatever I can to help the team and I could not be more excited going into this year, I’ve never felt better going into a football season, so I’m ecstatic.”
With the opener coming up quickly on Sunday, it may be easier said than done to not let contract stuff creep into the game plan, especially with a family who loves living in Philadelphia, with a brother who is attending Temple.
Ertz insists he can do it, even mentioning that he will play through a lacerated kidney, the way he did in last year’s playoff game against Seattle.
“We have roots here now,” said Ertz. “This is home to me. I would never think in another jersey until that time were to come. I’ve always said from the moment I got here that I want to be like Kobe … He played with one organization his entire career, and that’s my goal always.
“I’ll never let the thought of playing in another jersey creep in because I don’t think I can picture that thought in my brain, yet. I don’t even want to get there because I don’t want to shut the door.
“I think when you start having those thoughts, you’re not going to give 100 percent. That’s something I would never do. I’ll always give 100 percent for this team and this city because that’s how much I love it here.”
The reality of the business side of things, however, is that the Eagles’ salary cap situation is in dire straits for 2021, especially with a cap that is expected to decrease due to the pandemic, perhaps shaving as much as $23M off of it based on some of the speculation out there.
The Eagles were already about $50M over the cap before any decrease is factored in. Also, the Eagles have a tight end in Dallas Goedert who they believe can become one of the top five at his position over the next couple of seasons and one who is still on a rookie deal and will need a new contract at some point in the next year or two.
GM Howie Roseman was asked last weekend about the cap as it pertained to potentially adding a big-name free agent now or in the near future, and his answer wasn’t very rosy.
“I don't think we're in the position to take on a lot of money anymore,” said Roseman. “I think we need that cap space to roll over to make sure that we are in position to keep the balance of the team together in 2021. It's just the reality of the situation and the world we're living in.”
Ertz can only hope the world he will be living now and in the future is in Philadelphia.
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