Zach Ertz was one of the faces of the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles. Since that magical season, it’s been far from smooth sailing for Ertz. ESPN currently has Ertz as a backup tight end for the Eagles, just a few seasons removed from his 1,000-yard season.
His name has since been surfacing as a potential trade candidate. While he would upgrade a number of teams in the league, here are three teams that should keep their focus away from Ertz.
Teams that need to forget about trading for Zach Ertz
#1 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers
While the Buccaneers are in win-now mode and should be unafraid to throw draft picks and money around, they should cool their jets when it comes to Zach Ertz. First and foremost, the Buccaneers are pretty much set at tight end. They have Rob Gronkowski, one of the best tight ends to ever grace the league.
Granted, he has not been quite the force he was in his prime, earning just 623 yards and seven touchdowns in 2020. However, he has a wealth of playoff experience and chemistry with Tom Brady.
Behind Gronkowski is OJ Howard, who was the interesting, young tight end starter before Gronkowski came in to bump him out of the way. He earned about 500 yards and five touchdowns in two of this three seasons pre-Gronkowski.
Considering Ertz is coming off a season that saw him earn only 335 yards and one touchdown, it would make sense to stick with Howard.
#2 – Los Angeles Rams
The Los Angeles Rams just finished going through a rough committee duo of Gerald Everett and Tyler Higbee, and both players struggled to surpass 500 yards due to a lack of targets. With Everett now in Seattle and the Rams able to focus on getting Higbee going, it would make very little sense to stuff a 30-year-old Ertz into the lineup as it would bring back those days the Rams just left behind.
#3 – Dallas Cowboys
The Dallas Cowboys have two solid competitors at starting tight end. Blake Jarwin missed 2020 with an injury and his backup, Dalton Schultz, came in and earned 615 yards and four touchdowns. No matter who wins, the Cowboys have two starters on their hands.
They hardly need Ertz to come in and confuse the lineup.
Also, with him coming from the rival Eagles, the cost of the tight end would be increased due to a de facto rival tax. Intra-divisional trades are rarely worth the cost and there is usually some type of double-cross going on as added baggage. No need to rock the boat, Dallas.