Eagles Decision Making At TE Forced Their Way To Zach Ertz Return

A 35-year-old tight end coming off an ACL tear is not a plan, it’s a patch. Even when the TE in question is Eagles franchise legend Zach Ertz.

Oct 14, 2021; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles tight end Zach Ertz (86) against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports

PHILADELPHIA - Nostalgia is usually a trap in the NFL. Reunion tours usually engage the fan base by sparking fond memories, but they rarely solve the actual problem on the field. 

A 35-year-old tight end coming off an ACL tear is not a plan, it’s a patch. Even when the TE in question is Eagles franchise legend Zach Ertz.

Philadelphia GM Howie Roseman had to pull this trigger, though. Dallas Goedert’s MCL sprain in Week 2 against Tennessee did not just remove the starter, it exposed how thin the position had already become. 

Both Grant Calcaterra and second-round rookie Eli Stowers started the season on injured reserve, leaving the limited Johnny Mundt and E.J. Jenkins — both primarily blockers — as the healthy options on the 53. 

You could easily mistake that as a Michael Clay room rather than what Ryan Mahaffey was set to work with with Chicago on the horizon.

Ertz was the one available veteran who still knows how to get open in the middle of the field. Last season in Washington, he snared 50 receptions for 504 yards and four touchdowns before his knee gave out. The Stanford product left Philadelphia in 2021 only 11 receptions short of Harold Carmichael’s franchise record. 

None of that is why Ertz is returning to South Philly, first as a member of the practice squad before the inevitable promotion to the 53. He is here because the Eagles suddenly had no reliable receiving tight end for the Bears on Monday night.

The sentimental part of the narrative writes itself. Super Bowl LII – the fourth-down catch. The go-ahead score. – Three Pro Bowls in midnight green and a then-NFL record for TEs with 116 receptions. Ertz saying he is “honored to be back in Eagles green.” 

The city should enjoy this. Just do not confuse the feelings with the transaction. 

A Placeholder

Sep 13, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert (88) catches a pass for a touchdown against Washington Commanders safety Jeremy Reaves (39) during the first half at Lincoln Financial Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The 2026 Eagles offense still belongs to Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, DeVonta Smith and Goedert. Ertz is the placeholder for Goedert.

Depth at tight end was already a concern before Goedert’s injury. Stowers was not ready. Calcaterra was already down. 

Goedert’s injury, though, turned a weakness into an emergency. 

Reaching for a familiar name who can still run a route and catch a football in traffic is not romantic. It is the least-bad available option on short notice.

If Ertz looks like the 2025 version for a few weeks, the Eagles get a competent intermediate target and some insurance in the red zone. If the knee or the years show up, they have lost little. 

Either way, the roster forced the decison, not by the nostalgia.

Sometimes the band-aid is just the player who used to wear the jersey.

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