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How are those Zach Ertz contract negotiations going? Good? Because Dallas Goedert is becoming a one-man circus act.
The third-year tight end made the play of the day at Eagles training camp on Monday when he transformed his body into a human levitation device. Goedert reached into the heavens with his right hand and tipped the football down into his body. Not only did he secure the catch but he rolled over into the end zone for the score.
You could argue Carson Wentz’s throw was a tad too high — or you could say the quarterback put it the only place where Goedert could get it. Either way, it was a spectacular play sure to be replicated throughout the regular season.
Goedert, a second-round pick in 2018, is looking to improve on a 58-reception, 607-yard career year last season as his role expands in the Eagles’ new and improved quick-strike “Tecmo Bowl” attack. It’s no secret that the team loves to utilize “12 Personnel” (translation: one running back, two tight ends, three wide receivers) and create mismatches with Goedert and Ertz.
According to Michael Fabiano, the Eagles ran the most offensive plays in 2019 and 46.1-percent of them came out of two tight-end sets. It’s a not-so-shocking trend likely to increase during the 2020 campaign. Especially after hearing Wentz sound downright giddy about the potential.
“Both those two guys are studs,” Wentz told reporters on Monday. “We can do a lot of things with both of them on the field and create a lot of mismatches. If they want to put a linebacker on one of them and safety on the other, we can explore the mismatches and exploit them as well.”
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Eagles Offense Always ‘On the Same Page’
There have been rumors over the years about certain players being jealous of others, including some guys complaining to the media about not getting enough targets. Alshon Jeffery’s name immediately comes to mind and Ertz sometimes gets mentioned in those same conversations.
On Monday, Wentz wanted to clear up that misconception by explaining everybody just wants to win. It doesn’t matter who leads the Eagles in receptions, although Wentz and the coaching staff work hard to make sure the offensive gameplan is balanced.
“They [Ertz and Goedert] both just want to win and they both want to win so badly,” Wentz said. “If one week Dallas is getting more balls or one week Zach is getting more balls, as long as we’re winning, it doesn’t matter. We’re on the same page. I think the same thing goes for our whole offense. Spreading the ball around is part of my job. It’s part of the coach’s jobs and designing a game plan as well. We’re all on the same page.”
Of course, it wasn’t really much of an issue last year as crazy injuries and dropped passes marred the receiving corps. Wentz infamously became the first signal-caller in NFL history to throw for 4,000 yards and not have a single receiver with 500 yards. Ertz topped the team with 98 receptions for 916 yards, with Goedert right behind him (58 catches for 607 yards). The top receiver? Jeffery and his 43 balls for 490 yards.
Wentz Already Noticing More ‘Explosive’ Unit
The one thing Wentz has kept beating the drum about all offseason has been getting more explosive on offense, landing more “splash plays.” Ertz has joined him in that chorus, along with Rich Scangarello (senior offensive assistant) and Aaron Moorehead (wide receivers coach), and the team invested a ton of draft picks in adding speed and athleticism.
It’s already paying huge dividends. Yes, the Eagles have only been in pads for one practice so far but the “new kids on the block” — Jalen Reagor, John Hightower, Quez Watkins — seem to have the right stuff (sorry, bad pun).
“Without a doubt, without a doubt,” Wentz said on seeing a more explosive offense. “Obviously, we went out and got some young guys and you see the speed and you see Reagor and Hightower and Quez and their ability to stretch the defense down the field.”
The rookies are meshing well with veteran speedster DeSean Jackson, too.
“We all know what DeSean can do, saw what he did last year in his one-game healthy,” Wentz said. “So I think all those pieces will definitely make us more explosive and also open a lot of things underneath for the tight ends, for the running backs … I’m excited to see how we kind of use all those different guys but I do think they will cause more explosive plays down the field.”
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