Philadelphia Eagles: Zach Ertz makes huge statement on his contract talks

2. This one’s on the Philadelphia Eagles brass and their G.M.

So here we are in the worst imaginable situation, one that shouldn’t have even played out like this. Ertz’s contract negotiations have hit a stalemate. Meanwhile, two of his peers, Travis Kelce and George Kittle, have been awarded long-term extensions. Now, think about that.

All Ertz ever hears is he’s not as good as the other two. Now, the money he’s making drives that point home even further, and meanwhile, Jason Peters, a man who went about getting his money the wrong way, just got paid. Oh, and the ‘Birds’ made Peters a team captain after his antics. did anyone notice that Ertz isn’t a team captain?

Say what you want, but he deserves that honor more than Craig James and Duke Riley, and don’t give us any nonsense about the fact that they play on special teams. Ertz will always be remembered for what he did as an Eagle. Can we say that about Riley and James? Has he not given more to this team than they have?

Then, there’s the other argument. The one that goes Ertz has no leg to stand on because Philly has Dallas Goedert waiting in the wings. Let’s clear something up. If you believe that it’s a foregone conclusion that ’88’ is going to take over for ’86’ and reproduce everything that we’ve seen from Ertz over his career in Philly, you need a football tutor. That’s a high bar, and as good as Goedert is (he can ball), no one can say that definitively.

This isn’t on Ertz. It’s on Howie because his drafts have been atrocious and he’s ruined the salary cap by adding free agents and crafting bad extensions that have repeatedly put this team in a bind. That’s why there’s no money to sign Ertz, so the man who will probably break the Eagles record for most career receptions’ career sits in limbo. Ladies and gents, again, that isn’t on ’86’. It’s on Howie, and if Ertz is frustrated, he’s done enough for this franchise that we owe him an ear.