Eagles' Zach Ertz 'Probably Tired of the Bullcrap in Philly,' Says Veteran NFL Player

At least one anonymous NFL player believes veteran tight end Zach Ertz is ready to move on from the Philadelphia Eagles.

As part of ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler's poll to determine the NFL's top tight ends, a veteran NFL offensive player said the following regarding Ertz: "He's probably tired of the bullcrap in Philly. With a fresh start, he'll still be great."

Despite struggling through the worst season of his career in 2020 because of a combination of injuries and poor quarterback play, an anonymous panel of NFL executives, coaches, scouts and players still voted Ertz as the 10th-best tight end in the league.

Because of Ertz's contract situation and the continued emergence of Dallas Goedert (No. 6 on Fowler's tight end list), Ertz has been the subject of trade speculation for some time.

That was even before he finished with just 36 receptions for 335 yards and one touchdown in 11 games last season.

The 30-year-old Ertz has just one year and $8.5 million remaining on his contract, meaning it is likely the Eagles would prefer to move him before the start of the 2021 season and get an asset in return.

Unfortunately for the Eagles, Ertz is coming off his worst season and has a big salary-cap number, which could impede their trading efforts.

Still, he was named to the Pro Bowl three years in a row before falling off in 2020. He also isn't far removed from a career year in 2018 when he registered career highs across the board with 116 receptions for 1,163 yards and eight touchdowns.

Ertz finished with at least 800 receiving yards in five consecutive seasons from 2015 to 2019, averaging 86 catches for 914 yards and nearly six touchdowns per season.

One AFC executive expressed optimism that he can possibly get back to his old ways, saying: "Still a productive player, but the explosion and fluidity wasn't all the way there [last year]. Maybe a full offseason to get healthy will help him regain that."

Several teams could use an upgrade at tight end, and they could do much worse than a player in Ertz who was clearly among the top three or four tight ends in the league for several years before last season.

The Indianapolis Colts are one potential landing spot since Ertz's former quarterback in Philadelphia, Carson Wentz, is now the signal-caller in Indy. Also, Colts head coach Frank Reich was the Eagles' offensive coordinator when they won the Super Bowl during the 2017 season.

Another potential landing spot is Buffalo, as tight end is the Bills' weakest position on offense.

Eagles play-by-play announcer Merrill Reese claimed last month that Philadelphia and Buffalo were "close" to agreeing to a deal involving Ertz, but regardless of where he ends up, it seems like a foregone conclusion that his days with the Eagles are numbered.