The Zach Ertz situation remains up in the air, as the Eagles plan to hold out until they proper value for Ertz on the trade market, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo.
"The Eagles just are not in a rush when it comes to Zach Ertz, I mean that's their stance and they've had talks with teams about a potential trade," Garafolo said on Tuesday.
"The Eagles are looking at it like, 'Hey Zach Ertz had a down year last year. This is a guy with a lot of value, this is a potential Hall Of Fame career that if he's putting together...so we're not just going to give this guy away. Worse comes to worse, we'll ask him to come back and be a target for Jalen Hurts.'"
Garafolo, who does not believe Ertz will remain in Philadelphia, also said the Eagles are not going to cut the 30-year-old three-time Pro Bowl tight end to save cap space.
"That's not going to happen," Garafolo said of the Eagles potentially releasing Ertz. "They are going to hold him until they get the value in a trade for him that they expect."
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Ertz is currently entering the final year of a five-year, 42.5 million dollar contract, where is due a base salary of $8.25 million in 2021. However, Garafolo is reporting that Ertz is willing to play this season on the final year of his contract.
"Teams that have to look at this—a lot of people may have thought you've got to sign Zach Ertz to a new deal as part of this. I'm told that is not the case, that he would play out the last year of his deal and then try to sign an extension after he proves he can get back to doing what he was doing before."
While Ertz has certainly put together an impressive NFL career and will be forever beloved in Philadelphia, the market for a 30-year-old non explosive tight end must be thin. Ertz is coming off a season where he played just 11 games, catching 36 balls for 335 yards and one touchdown.
This seems like conjecture on the Eagles' part, hoping for greater draft compensation in return for Ertz than they are being offered.