Zach Ertz's Updated Fantasy Outlook After TE's Trade To Cardinals

Thursday night, Zach Ertz was scoring a touchdown for the Philadelphia Eagles in a 28-22 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

By Friday morning, he was an Arizona Cardinal.

The Cardinals sent cornerback Tay Gowan and a 2022 fifth-round pick to Philadelphia in exchange for Ertz, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported Friday. 

A three-time Pro Bowler, Ertz immediately jumps into the TE1 conversation with the move. He's only 30 and still flashed Pro Bowl-level talent when given a chance this season with the Eagles, who have seen their passing game struggle with Jalen Hurts at the helm.

Ertz will join a far more dynamic offense in Arizona, which entered Week 6 ranked sixth in total offense. 

Kyler Murray has spread the ball around all season, with six different pass-catchers hauling in at least 16 passes and none topping more than 23 grabs.

Here is where we pump the brakes on Ertz returning to any level of superstardom. The Cardinals spread the ball around far too much to reasonably rely on any receiver week-to-week besides DeAndre Hopkins—and even he's been one of the year's biggest disappointments from a draft-value standpoint.

Maxx Williams, who will be replaced by Ertz after suffering a season-ending knee injury, reeled in 16 passes for 193 yards and a touchdown through the first five weeks. That was good for TE18 in overall scoring.

While Ertz has a higher ceiling than Williams, it's tough to imagine him being anything better than TE10-12 moving forward. The Cardinals offense is dynamic enough that Ertz should be owned in all formats, but they don't feature the tight end enough for you to blow through your FAAB to get him.