The Washington Commanders are entering the 2026 NFL season with a revamped roster. After bolstering the NFL’s oldest 53-man roster in over a decade last season, the front office made a notable effort to get younger and more explosive. That meant moving on from several key veteran players, including tight end Zach Ertz.
Ertz was a staple in the Washington offense over the past two seasons. He was primarily one of Jayden Daniels’ most trustworthy targets during his rookie-of-the-year campaign. Ertz recorded 116 receptions for 1,158 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns across 30 games played with Washington. His tenure with the team ended this offseason after general manager Adam Peters chose not to re-sign him following his season-ending torn ACL during Week 14 of last season.
Zach Ertz Doesn’t Want Career To End On Injury Note
Ertz told Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer back in April, “I don’t want it to be the last play that I have. “Even talking to people now, and they do it out of the goodness of their heart, and [they say], ‘Man, that injury was tough.’ When people think of my career and that last play, I don’t want that to be the conversation starter. And so, for me, it’s just doing everything I can to get back to my best because I felt like I was playing really good football before I got hurt.”
There hasn’t been much movement on Ertz’s end since these comments were made. However, Philadelphia Eagles beat reporter EJ Smith posted recently that an Ertz reunion is on the table according to league sources.
Zach Ertz News Likely A Result of Eli Stowers’ Lack Of Development
“Nothing is imminent as the 35-year-old is nearing the nine-month mark of recovery from a scary knee injury suffered on Dec. 7, but Ertz would welcome a return to the Eagles for his 14th season,” Smith wrote. “He was cleared for football activities earlier this month, although the nine-month benchmark coming next week is often a timeline teams will abide by when assessing a player coming off an ACL tear.”
Ertz began his career with the Commanders’ rival in 2013 when he was drafted in the second round.
Ertz went on to record 579 catches for 6,267 yards and 38 touchdowns across eight and a half seasons with the Eagles. He also secured the game-winning touchdown in Super Bowl LII against the New England Patriots.
Ertz’s interest has increased lately because of the slow development of the Eagles’ second-round tight end draft pick, Eli Stowers.
Glenn Erby of Eagles Wire added to the conversation with, “Ertz would give Jalen Hurts an experienced receiving option and provide Stowers, a second-round rookie, with a mentor. His familiarity with the organization would reduce uncertainty associated with adding an outside veteran. There are practical questions. Philadelphia would need to evaluate Ertz’s knee and determine whether his receiving ability provides enough value to justify another roster move. Ertz has never been known primarily for his blocking, and the Eagles already have Goedert as their leading receiving tight end.”
While perhaps not the most devastating news for Washington, it could ultimately end up being one that pushes the needle ahead for Philly. Their Week 1 bout is just 14 days away as kickoff quickly approaches.
Former Commanders TE Trending Towards Reunion with Division Rival Team